SSC Napoli

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 TacticsMaurizio 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…

Napoli look to extend their current win streak to nine matches and maintain, at minimum, an 18-point lead over their nearest rivals. Meanwhile, Lazio, who are competing for a place in next season's Champions League, will look to secure their first victory at the Stadio Maradona/San Paolo since the 2014/15 season.SSC NapoliWith Inter’s surprise loss to Bologna, Napoli opened up an 18-point lead over the two clubs from Milan. However, Luciano Spalletti refuses to count his chickens before they hatch. With Napoli competing in only one competition until the Champions League resumes in mid march, the Napoli coach has little…

In the first episode of the week, Joe Fischetti reviews Saturday's Match against Empoli and previews Friday’s match against Lazio, including: Part 1 - Match Review: Empoli vs Napoli, including: Napoli taking advantage of corner kicks; Mario Rui’s red card and playing with ten men; Vicario with another stellar performance; Napoli’s impressive defensive run of form; and Hirvng Lozano continued strong play (~0:57) Part 2 - Match Preview: Napoli vs Lazio with Alasdair Mackenzie, including: Lazio’s season up to this point; Sarri’s reluctance to rotate, despite a busy summer mercato; Inconsistent Alberto and Milinkovic-Savic; Injuries to Immobile; Starting lineups; and…

On Wednesday, Lega Serie A issued Official Communication No. 161 for the 24th round of matches of the 2022/23 Serie A campaign contested between the 25th and 28th of February. These are the words of Sports Judge Gerardo Mastandrea, assisted by Stefania Ginesio and by representative of the AIA Carlo Moretti: Disqualification for two effective match days and fine of €10,000 Silva Duarte Mario Rui (Napoli): for voluntarily kicking a player in the groin of the opposing team in the 22nd minute of the second half, after falling to the ground following a normal tackle with the ball away from…

Victor Osimhen scored his 19th goal of the season, extending both the club's current win streak and the player's current goal-scoring run to eight consecutive matches. Here are four takeaways selected by Forza Napoli Press.From the CornerNapoli have demonstrated this season that they can score goals in a variety of different ways:  well-worked team moves, individual moments of brilliance, (sometimes) from the penalty spot and, as demonstrated against Empoli, from the set piece.Napoli earned seven corner kicks in the first half alone, and converted two of them into goals. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia routinely set up at the edge of the Empoli…

Napoli look to extend their Serie A win streak to eight matches and inch closer to their first Scudetto in 33 years, while Empoli look to end their four-match winless streak.Empoli FCAfter a surprising victory over Inter, Empoli have three draws and one loss. The other Azzurri have been fairly predictable this season. They tend to beat teams near the bottom of the table, draw teams in the middle of the table and lose to teams at the top of the table.Nevertheless, Empoli have remained in Serie A since returning two seasons ago, largely due to their sound business model. Like Napoli,…

On Friday, UEFA announced via its official web site and social media channels that Giovanni Di Lorenzo's goal against Eintracht Frankfurt, assisted by a clever backheel from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, was named Champions League Goal of the Week. The other nominees were Darwin Núñez, who scored with a clever backheel flick to open the scoring against Real Madrid, Vinicius Junior, who pulled one back against Liverpool, curling the ball inside the far post, and Karim Benzema's second to seal the 2-5 victory over Liverpool. https://twitter.com/UEFAcom_it/status/1629077059526959106?s=20

Victor Osimhen and Giovanni Di Lorenzo scored at the Deutsche Bank Park, putting Napoli in a commanding position heading into the second leg, which Eintracht Frankfurt will play without their top scorer. Here are four takeaways selected by Forza Napoli Press. Relentless After weathering the early storm, which was undoubtedly fueled by the energy of the Frankfurt faithful, Napoli settled down and took control of the match. From the 20th minute onward, Napoli were in complete control and they were relentless in attack. While Luciano Spalletti was pleased with the result, the Napoli coach might rue not having put the…

The Champions League resumes on Tuesday for two of Europe's most exciting teams, as both Napoli and Eintracht Frankfurt seek their first ever Champions League Quarter-Final berth.Eintracht FrankfurtFrankfurt enter their first Champions League Round of 16 match on a high note. After a 3-0 defeat to FC Koln in 20th round of the German Bundesliga, Die Adler (The Eagles) responded with a 2-0 victory over Werder Bremen.Randal Kolo Muani put the match away with his tenth goal in the league and 15th in all competitions, to go along with his Bundesliga-leading 10 assists. Kolo Muani was signed in the summer on…

In the first episode of the week, Joe Fischetti reviews Napoli’s win over Sassuolo and previews Napoli’s match against Eintracht Frankfurt: Part 1: Match Review - Sassuolo-Napoli, including: More wonder-goals from Kvaratskhelia and Osimhen; Osimhen’s numerous chances; Simone’s disallowed goal and why VAR needs to change; Spalletti’s late changes; the other impressive left winger; Sassuolo’s dilemma; and Napoli’s kickoff routine (~1:06) Part 2: Match Preview - Eintracht Frankfurt-Napoli, including: Frankfurt’s journey to the Champions League, including their dramatic Europa League win; Frankfurt’s familiar business model; Frankfurt’s Champions League Group Stage; Starting Lineups; Frankfurt’s style of play and key players; and…