Lorenzo Lucca, Napoli's 25-year-old forward, enters the second phase of pre-season preparation at Castel di Sangro with his place in Massimiliano Allegri's plans still unresolved — a silence that speaks louder than any public statement from the club.
The significance is not merely tactical. Lucca managed one goal in 16 Serie A appearances last season, carrying an average match rating of 6.60 and an AI overall score of 57 out of a possible 100. Those numbers describe a player operating at the lower threshold of adequacy for a side that finished second in the table with 73 points. Napoli scored 57 times across 37 matches; Lucca's direct contribution to that total was minimal. For a forward of his age and physical profile, the ceiling suggested by his potential rating of 68 remains theoretical rather than demonstrated.
What the pre-season has shown so far is instructive. In the 2-0 friendly victory against Carrarese at Dimaro, the goals came from Rasmus Hojlund and Giacomo Giovane. Allegri, speaking after that result, addressed the squad's situation and the transfer market in broad terms without singling out Lucca for either praise or criticism — a studied neutrality that offers the player no particular reassurance. The coach indicated Napoli would evaluate what they have once the window develops further, which is a reasonable position for a club still navigating incomings and outgoings.
The move to Castel di Sangro for the second pre-season block arrives without Jesper Lindstrom, whose absence from that camp adds a small subplot to a squad still being assembled. Kevin De Bruyne's delayed return — expected next week after an extended break — further complicates Allegri's ability to settle on a system, which in turn leaves Lucca's role undefined. A forward's position in the hierarchy is partly determined by the midfield service he receives; with De Bruyne absent and the attack still fluid, no final judgement on Lucca's standing is yet possible.
That uncertainty cuts both ways. Lucca is not excluded, but he is not central. At 25, with a potential ceiling that his numbers have not yet approached, this pre-season represents a genuine inflection point. Allegri's Napoli will need goals from somewhere — 57 across a full campaign is a modest return for a second-placed side — and the question is whether Lucca can make himself the answer or whether the market will render the question moot before August is out.
The second training block will tell Allegri more than the first. Whether Lucca features prominently in it, or watches from the margins again, will clarify his summer considerably.