With 103 goals in Serie A, the Red Devil is now ahead of the Italian Antonio Vojak, active in the Partenopei between 1929 and 1935. Mertens, 34 years old and in Naples since 2013, was already the club’s top scorer in all competitions. With 137 achievements, he is ahead of other local legends Marek Hamsik (121) and the late Diego Maradonna (115).
The Belgian winger is also the 6th player with the most matches for the Neapolitan circle (369), far behind Hamsik (520).
After a shoulder injury at the start of the season, Mertens lost his starting place in the squad coached by Luciano Spalletti. Entered the game a quarter of an hour from the end against Inter on Sunday night, Mertens reduced the gap with a magnificent long shot (3-2). He could even have equalized but his volley shot over Samir Handanovic’s goal.
The ‘Lutin de Louvain’ has also recently joined the very small circle of centenarians in the national team. Red Devil since February 2011, it now has 103 caps. He is beaten by Jan Vertonghen (136), Axel Witsel (120), Toby Alderweireld (118) and Eden Hazard (116) while Romelu Lukaku, 68 goals in 101 appearances, is behind him.
