Four Napoli players were in action on Thursday: Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Matteo Politano, Eljif Elmas and Stanislav Lobotka. Alex Meret was in the Italy squad for their match against England, backing up Gianluigi Donnarumma. Meanwhile, Hirving Lozano was left out of Mexico’s squad for their CONCACAF Nation’s League match against Suriname and Giovanni Simeone was not in the Argentina squad for their friendly against Panama.
Maradona Hosts the Azzurri
Giovanni Di Lorenzo played the full 90 minutes in Italy’s 1-2 defeat at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples. The Napoli captain was unfortunate to concede a penalty kick in the first half while defending an England corner kick. The ball happened to bounce off the top of Di Lorenzo’s hand, which was outstretched to check the position of Harry Kane. Though the defender’s eyes were squarely on the ball, a penalty kick was indeed the correct decision by the letter of the law. Kane converted the penalty to give England a 0-2 lead.
Di Lorenzo atoned for the unfortunate incident in the second half, intercepting Harry Maguire’s pass intended for Jack Graelish to initiate the counterattack. Three passes later, naturalized Argentinian Mateo Retegui scored his first in the Azzurri shirt.
Meanwhile, Matteo Politano played 28 minutes, replacing Domenico Berardi in the second half. Along with Wilfried Gnonto, Politano provided a much needed spark off the bench. The right winger immediately showed his chemistry with Di Lorenzo. In the 67th minute, the pair gave the home crowd a glimpse of Luciano Spalletti’s playing style, exchanging quick, one-touch passes to play out of the back to initiate an Italy attack.
Double Digits for the Diamond
Eljif Elmas played the full 90 minutes in North Macedonia’s 2-1 victory over Malta. The Napoli midfielder showcased his quick feet and close-ball control while playing in a free-roaming No. 10 role. Though Elmas had the occasional half-chance, Malta frustrated the home side in the first half.
However, North Macedonia found the breakthrough in the second half, and it was Elmas who found the back of the goal. Ezgjan Alioski played a diagonal lob towards the edge of the area, where Bojan Miovski head the ball into the centre of the box. Elmas shot on the half-volley into the bottom corner, scoring his 10th goal for his nation.
The Napoli midfielder wasn’t done there. In the 71st minute, he started the break and played the pass before the pass as North Macedonia doubled their lead. Darko Churlinov completed the move with a left-footed strike that curled into the bottom corner at the near post.
Another Draw for Calzona
Stanislav Lobotka played the full 90 minutes in Slovakia’s scoreless draw against Luxembourg. Neither side created many chances, and when they did, the respective goalkeepers made some fine saves.
The highlight of the match for Lobotka was a defensive play in the 36th minute. Luxembourg counterattacked from a Slovakia corner kick and the Napoli midfielder found himself defending Yvandro Borges Sanchez 1 v 1 at the edge of the Slovakia area. Sanchez tried to dribble through Lobotka but he calmly shielded the ball before stopping, turning and dribbling quickly out of the box. Lobotka was closed down Mathias Olsen, but he made a sharp cut-back before switching the play to an open teammate on the opposite side of the park.
Lobotka had a scare early in the second half after he withstood a couple of heavy tackles from Luxembourg striker Danel Sinani. Sinani bungled over the midfielder in the 48th minute, clawing his right boot in the process. Two minutes later the pair collided again. Lobotka stayed down for a while, holding the small of his back, but eventually walked it off and finished the match.
In the end, neither side found the back of the goal in yet another draw for ex-Napoli assistant coach, Francesco Calzona. Since taking charge of the Slovakia squad, Calzona has manager four draws and one loss.
