Romelu Lukaku's impending departure from Napoli — with the club and Fenerbahce both confident of completing an agreement — opens a theoretical vacancy in Massimiliano Allegri's attack. For Lorenzo Lucca, Napoli's 25-year-old forward, the timing is either an opportunity or a distraction, depending on what the club does next.
The practical reality is that Lucca has done little this season to make the decision straightforward. Across 16 Serie A appearances, he has contributed one goal and no assists, carrying an average rating of 6.60 — numbers that describe a player present but not decisive. Napoli sit second in the table on 73 points from 37 matches, a campaign built on defensive solidity rather than attacking abundance: 57 goals scored across the season is a functional rather than prolific return. Lucca's share of that output has been minimal.
The pre-season has offered mixed signals. A goal against Osasuna suggested some momentum; a 1-1 draw against Celta Vigo at Castel di Sangro, in which Kevin De Bruyne's equaliser cancelled out Giovanni Di Lorenzo's opener, showed that Napoli's attack still lacks the cutting edge Allegri will want before the new campaign begins. Lucca was part of that environment without, on the available evidence, altering it.
What complicates his situation further is the club's transfer activity around him. The Lukaku-to-Fenerbahce operation, if completed, removes a competitor but also signals that Napoli are actively reshaping their forward line. Gabriel Jesus has been mentioned as a potential addition. Each new name discussed is a reminder that Lucca's place is not assumed — it is contested.
His AI overall rating of 57 out of 100 captures the central tension: there is a better player inside him, but the gap between current and ceiling has not been closing at the rate a club with Napoli's ambitions requires. At 25, he is past the age at which raw potential excuses thin production. The next few weeks of pre-season, and the decisions Napoli make in the transfer market, will determine whether Lucca enters 2025-26 as a genuine option or a squad filler waiting for a move of his own.
The squad is being rebuilt around a new identity; Lucca needs to establish that he belongs in it before the window closes.