Mercato Madness: Two teams seek Camilo Zuniga loan

File under this one under the Why Are You Being Weird category: both Sampdoria and Turkish side Beskitas have reportedly made recent inquiries as to bringing in wing back Camilo Zuniga on loan for the rest of the season.

Yes, the same Camilo Zuniga who hasn't played since mid-October with yet another recurrence of injury issues in his long-troublesome right knee. No, we don't get it either.

If he were healthy, Zuniga actually does make a lot of sense for both sides. Sampdoria and Besiktas have each struggled at fullback this season, with injuries and poor form forcing each side to try various options out wide in defense to mixed success. The trouble is that Zuniga isn't healthy, hasn't been in three months, and there's no sign that he'll be back any time soon.

Even if Zuniga is coming back soon, Napoli need him far more than any tiny loan fee Samp or Besiktas could offer would represent in comparative value. With Christian Maggio frequently struggling for form and no real option behind him - all respect to Giandomenico Mesto, but he's not really good enough to start for a team pushing for titles any more - having Zuniga available again would make the life of Rafa Benitez much easier, allowing more straightforward rotation between matches in Serie A, the Coppa Italia, and the Europa League.

But, again, Zuniga's hurt. He has been for months. We don't know when, or if, he's coming back this season. When we've seen him doing work with a ball on the side next to Lorenzo Insigne the last few weeks, he's looked much more stiff and further from recovery from a player who shredded his knee and required surgery three weeks after Zuniga last played. Why either team is even trying to get him is a mystery, unless they know something about his status with Napoli that the general public does not.