Napoli’s suffered their first league defeat at the Maradona, as Maurizio Sarri’s pragmatic approach paid off. Here are three takeaways selected by Forza Napoli Press.
Changing Tactics
Maurizio Sarri had a game-plan and his team executed it to perfection. Ironically, Lazio did not use Sarri-ball to defeat Luciano Spalletti’s Sarri-ball 2.0. Lazio’s tactics were more akin to those of Simone Inzaghi and Massimiliano Allegri.
Lazio defended with 11 men behind the ball, often all in the Lazio half. Recognizing Napoli’s strengths, Lazio crowded the middle of the park and took away the passing lanes. The Partenopei responded by playing the long ball over the top to Victor Osimhen, but the Nigerian ran into the very physical play of Patric, who started over the suspended Nicolò Casale. With the clean sheet, Osimhen’s goal-scoring run ended at eight consecutive league matches.
With Napoli’s bright start to the second half, Lazio seemed content with a draw. The Biancocelesti didn’t enjoy their first spell of possession until midway through the half, scoring the only goal of the match from a counterattack moments later.
Return of the Ex
Napoli suffered their second defeat of the Serie A campaign. On both occasions, they lost by a score of 1-0 and on both occasions, the goal-scorer was a former player of Luciano Spalletti. Eden Dzeko scored the only goal in Inter’s 1-0 victory over Napoli in January and Matías Vecino scored the lone goal on Friday.
Vecino, who started over Danilo Cataldi in the centre of Lazio’s midfield, was the clear man of the match. The regista would have opened the scoring in the fifth minute had it not been for Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s brilliant headed clearance off the line.
Though Vecino hasn’t been hugely impressive playing as a regista this season, Sarri stuck with the Uruguyan and the decision paid off. After Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s unconvincing clearance of Elseid Hysaj cross, Vecino scored a once-in-a-lifetime goal. The midfielder fired a rocket on the half-volley into the bottom corner – a shot that seemed to pick up pace off of the bounce.
Vecino contributed at both ends of the pitch, hustling in the defensive phase to help Lazio protect the one-goal lead.
Best Defenses in the League
While Sarri and Spalletti are known for their free-flowing attacking football, this match showcased why Napoli and Lazio have the two best defensive records in the league.
Napoli held Lazio to an xG of 0.2. Other than Vecino’s two chances, both of which were highly unlikely to find the back of the goal, the visitors had only one goal-scoring opportunity. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic struck the outside of the upright from a free kick that was earned late in the match, while Napoli were pushing for the equalizer.
Meanwhile, Lazio held Napoli to their lowest xG of the season at 0.8. Lazio often put their bodies in the way, blocking Napoli’s somewhat speculative efforts from outside the area. Adam Marušić and Elseid Hysaj effectively negated two of Napoli’s most in-form players in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Hirving Lozano, respectively.
When Napoli created their best chances of the match, they were denied by the frame of the goal and brilliance of Ivan Provedel. The Lazio shot-stopper made a fantastic reaction save to deny Kim Min-jae after Osimhen’s header crashed off the bar. With the win, Provedel earned his league-leading 14th clean sheet of the season.
