Football
ESPN staff 6y

Marek Hamsik equals Maradona's Napoli record of 115 goals

Marek Hamsik equalled Diego Maradona's club record with his 115th goal for Napoli on Saturday.

Hamsik matched the Argentine legend's tally by scoring after 30 minutes in Napoli's 3-1 win at Torino, a result that put Napoli back at the top of Serie A.

Dries Mertens controlled the ball in the area and picked out Hamsik, who volleyed into the top right corner for Napoli's third goal.

"It's a good accomplishment, especially as a midfielder, 115 goals is a good number," Hamsik said.

"We are really happy with the performance, because the game could easily have ended with more goals. We're back to the side we were and that is very important."

It has taken the Slovakia midfielder 11 seasons and 477 appearances to reach that tally. Maradona, set that mark in 259 games in seven seasons with Napoli as a forward, while leading the club to their only two Serie A titles in 1987 and 1990.

But Hamsik wasn't getting carried away with Napoli's place atop the table, which sees them two points clear of Inter Milan and three above Juventus, who play at Bologna on Sunday.

"I don't know if it's an advantage to be top of the table, but it can help us remember our strength and realise we've got to fight to the end," he said.

Maradona has paid tribute to Hamsik for equalling his club record, two-and-a-half months after his last goal against Cagliari on Oct. 1 took him to within one of the Napoli idol.

Now the pressure of equalling him is off, Maradona has urged Hamsik to go on and take the record for himself.

"My congratulations go to Marek Hamsik for having reached 115 goals for Napoli," Maradona wrote on Facebook. "I hope he will continue to score many more for the joy of the fans!!!"

Hamsik also earned praise from his coach, Maurizio Sarri, who Mediaset Premium: "We are talking about a player of an extraordinary level.

"If someone like him plays 45 games of an inferior level, you just have to accept it and stick by him with the certainty he'll pay you back eventually. He'd been improving for the past few matches."

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