With the Serie A season over and only the Champions League Final left to play, we start to look at the summer transfer window, and it’s set to be a big one.

SSC Napoli ended third after a gallant season, finishing just below AS Roma and champions Juventus. The problem is that Napoli can realistically only hope to finish as high as second as Juventus are so dominant in the Italian top division. The San Paolo residents have finished in the top three in four of the last five seasons, not winning since they won promotion in 2007.

So, should Napoli look to sell one of their most valuable players, Marek Hamsik, in the hope of reinforcing the rest of the team to mount a real challenge on Juventus next season?

Hamsik: More than just a Captain

Source: Marek Hamsik via Facebook

The Czech-born Slovakian midfielder has been with Napoli for ten years and is closing in on Diego Maradona’s goals record at the club, which stands at 115. He is easily one of the club’s best players, if not their very best player, and has a strong connection to the fan base.

His natural strength, endless work rate, tenacious tackling, slick passing, and eye for goal are some of the many aspects of his game that make Marek Hamsik one of the top midfielders in the world; one that has been much sought after for a few seasons now.  The team captain turns 30-years-old before next season begins and his value currently stands at £34 million, so Napoli could be looking at a £50-plus million payday should they decide to sell their star.

Now approaching the tail end of his career, Hamsik only has two Italian Cups and one Italian Super Cup to his name despite his immense calibre. This lack of trophies looks set to continue with Juventus rated as the heavy favourites to win the league once again next season with 888sport, at 1/2 to Napoli’s 6/1.

But that doesn’t seem to bother the Slovakian, as he stated earlier this season that he loves the club: “I would rather win one trophy here than ten elsewhere. I’m getting close to Maradona’s record, but he will always be number one. I like to think I could be close to his level one day but, to do so, I need to win major trophies with Napoli.”

Should Napoli sell Marek Hamsik?

607140649AP00103_Russia_v_S’ – Ajith Kumar via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

While Marek Hamsik has been and still is a huge part of the SSC Napoli team, he may only have another few years of football left in him in which he can keep playing at this very high level. Also, right now he is worth a lot of money at a time when huge sums of money are being thrown around by bigger clubs across Europe.

To build a successful club, Napoli will no doubt want to continue to build around their captain but their only notable spending sprees of late have come when they’ve sold the likes of Gonzalo Higuain or Edinson Cavani. So, maybe it’d be best if they did sell Hamsik and boost the squad with the proceeds – which would also give the immensely talented midfielder a chance to win some major trophies elsewhere.