Even with the return of the ultras’ support, Napoli failed to find the back of the goal against a stingy Hellas Verona defense. Here are three takeaways selected by Forza Napoli Press.
Eyes on the Other Prize
None of the three Italian teams competing in the Champions League won their respective matches on Saturday. Stefano Pioli made ten changes ahead of Milan’s 1-1 draw against Bologna and Simone Inzaghi made five changes ahead of Inter’s 0-1 defeat to Monza.
Luciano Spalletti made five changes of his own ahead of Napoli’s scoreless draw against Hellas Verona. Juan Jesus allowed Amir Rrahmani to rest while getting a match to prepare for Tuesday start over the suspended Kim Min-jae. Mathias Olivera auditioned for Tuesday”s match with a start over Mario Rui at left back. Diego Demme afforded Stanilav Lobotka a rare reprieve at regista. Matteo Politano pushed Hirving Lozano to the left wing, allowing Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to start on the bench. Finally, Giacomo Raspadori bumped Eljif Elmas to the midfield, relegating Piotr Zielinski to the bench.
With so much turnover, it was not surprising that Napoli lacked their usual rhythm and creativity in the midfield and bite in attack. Though Raspadori is a natural centre forward, he has not appeared fully fit in recent matches. Napoli’s best spell of the match was in the second half, after Kvaratskhelia, Zielinski, Lobotka and Osimhen were introduced.
Super-Osimhen Returns
Victor Osimhen made his first appearance in nearly a month, replacing Raspadori in the 27th minute of the second half. Napoli immediately looked more confident and more dangerous with Osimhen on the pitch.
In the 81st minute, Giovanni Di Lorenzo exploited Osimhen’s pace, launching the ball forward for the Nigerian to chase. Osimhen won a corner kick, which Napoli played quickly, leading to a chance for Di Lorenzo. A minute later, Osimhen completed a quick move through the middle of the park with a volley that rocked the bar and stayed out.
The Napoli striker was fortunate to stay out of the official’s book after the final whistle. He was livid that head official Federico La Penna ended the match in the midst of a Napoli attack. Had Osimhen been booked, he was have been suspended for Napoli’s upcoming match against Juventus due to yellow card accumulation.
Though Serie A’s leading goal-scorer did not find the back of the goal, he did enough to give Napoli fans confidence that, with Osimhen’s help, the Azzurri can advance to the Semi-finals of the Champions League.
Verona’s Low Block
Hellas Verona continued their impressive second half of the season, improving to 4-6-5 since the appointment of Marco Zaffaroni. The Gialloblu were content to concede the ball to Napoli, who enjoyed 80% ball possession.
However, the Partenopei did little with it, struggling to break down Hellas Verona’s low block. Often playing with all eleven players in and around the Verona box, the visitors held Napoli to their lowest xG of the season (0.4) and their fewest shots on target of the season (1).
With the draw, combined with Spezia’s defeat to Lazio, Hellas Verona pulled within three points of gli Aquilotti in the battle for survival.
