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what Gennaro Gattuso has done since replacing Ancelotti at Napoli

  /  autty

'It's my fault, but better times will come,' Gennaro Gattuso said recently. 'We just have to grit our teeth and keep working.'

The 42-year-old had to follow his own advice when he was presented with a Golden Tapir award from satirical television show Striscia La Notizia after defeat against Lazio.

The award is for a celebrity or sporting star who suffered a total humiliation. Five games in and Gattuso, in the eyes of some, has become a laughing stock in Naples.

Patience is difficult to achieve when you are on a six-month contract but given the mad-house that Gattuso walked into after replacing Carlo Ancelotti in mid-December, it is the least he deserves if this club is able to pull itself off the canvas.

Ancelotti, for all his charm and his impeccable career CV, left Napoli in disarray on and off the pitch. A quick-fix was always fanciful.

Players were enraged in a civil war with owner and cinema mogul Aurelio de Laurentiis and performances on the pitch suggested this squad had checked out under Ancelotti.

It was always going to take something close to a miracle to turn this squad of rebels back into top four candidates.

One league win from four has emboldened critics of Gattuso that this was every bit the disaster appointment that some suggested it would be.

For others, looking beyond the results showed that performances were actually improving, Lady luck was just not on their side quite yet.

It took a 93rd-minute winner from Parma to beat them, they were eight minutes away from ending Lazio's club-record winning run before a howler from goalkeeper David Ospina and losing at home to title challengers Inter Milan is hardly the biggest crime in Serie A right now.

But the cold, hard facts show that under the former AC Milan midfielder, Napoli have, in the short term at least, gone backwards under his stewardship.

Ancelotti left the club in seventh position, they are now 11th and they have gone from seven points off the top four to 11.

Gattuso's legacy during his six-month stint in charge at the San Paulo - if that is all it ends up to be - will hinge on games that follow with Fiorentina, Sampdoria and Lecce - teams currently sitting south of Napoli in the table - coming up in their next four league games.

De Laurentiis, at least, seems confident that 'the future is bright' under the man he refers to as Rino.

In his Christmas letter to disgruntled supporters, the controversial owner wrote: 'Dear Napoli fans, at this festive time, we come together to share in the sincere joy and affection we feel for our loved ones and families.

'The last few months of the footballing year have not brought us the satisfaction and success we have enjoyed in the past, but I am sure that with the impetus of Gennaro Gattuso, the hard work of the team and our unity of purpose, we have a bright future ahead.

'My constant, unerring focus – and that of the entire club – is on ensuring that our present and future live up to our desires for our bellowed club.'

One of the most striking changes Gattuso has made in his short reign is to switch back to 4-3-3 as opposed to the 4-4-2 that was regularly favoured by his predecessor.

This particularly suits Hirving Lozano and Lorenzo Inisgne as they can flank either side of an out-and-out No 9 striker.

Both struggled to compete and do the dirty work against opposition defenders when deployed together in a two-man attack.

Seeing Lozano cut inside from the right wing in the Coppa Italia win over Perugia in midweek, play a one-two with No 9 Fernando Llorente before winning a penalty for Insigne to score the opening goal, Gattuso will have felt vindicated that his system can - and will - work between now and May.

His desire to try and return to Maurizio Sarri-ball, which saw the Partenopei push Juventus all the way in the 2017-18 season as they achieved 91 points, means he needed new faces and his first two signings appear critical.

RB Leipzig's vice-captain Diego Demme, a self-confessed boyhood Napoli fan who picks out Gattuso as his idol and inspiration, will provide a warrior-like spirit in the centre of the park.

Demme typically plays in a defensive midfield role and his arrival, along with Lobotka, suggests the planning is already underway with an expectation that Allan will lead a summer exodus.

Demme's long-range passing is another strength and with a return to an orthodox No 9, likely to be Arkadiusz Milik moving forward, it is clear Gattuso is trying to improve the side's chance creation.

Lobotka, arriving from Celta Vigo for £21.5million, is another smart acquisition and while Gattuso is unlikely to be afforded more funds without any major departures, the pair are likely to slot straight into the side between now and the end of the season.

And as things stand that is when Gattuso will step away, out of contract and a new man will step in for the inevitable, and accepted, rebuild that is so badly needed to cleanse the club of its ills.

If Gattuso wants to be the man to revive this club and get them back into Europe, he likely needs to deliver some success that is tangible.

Barcelona are their last-16 opponents in the Champions League and it would be something close to a miracle to go the distance in that competition. The Coppa Italia is a more attainable title but a tough assignment against Lazio follows in the quarter-finals.

The start from Gattuso has been slow, but performances have seemingly shown signs of life, something that was majorly lacking towards the end of the Ancelotti reign.

While Napoli fans would have hoped Gattuso could have provided a quick fix,  the mess left by Ancelotti was actually far bigger than most had imagined. And so in a way, those early games against title contenders can be glossed over if forthcoming games are won and the team begin to ascend the standings.

Fail to overcome the likes of Fiorentina, Sampdoria and Lecce though, and the knives could be out for Gattuso before the season is out.