Victor Osimhen returned to Napoli’s starting line-up but could not inspire them to secure all three points, as they were held to a 1-1 draw by nine-man Verona in Sunday’s Serie A fixture, Completesports.com reports.
Osimhen, who was out of Napoli’s last two games, was replaced in the 90th minute.
It is the second time Napoli failed to win in Serie A this season, after also dropping points against AS Roma.
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Luciano Spalletti’s men missed the chance to break away at the top with Milan and Inter going head-to-head later on Sunday evening.
Verona took the lead in the 13th minute as Antonin Barak shrugged off Mario Rui and pulled back from the by-line, where Giovanni Simeone got in front of Amir Rrahmani to prod in from six yards.
Napoli got back on level terms on 18 minutes. A free kick was not cleared properly, Fabian Ruiz laid it off for Giovanni Di Lorenzo, who squirmed the finish under Lorenzo Montipò at the near post.
Verona had both Daniel Bessa and Nikola Kalinic sent off in the 88th and 93rd minutes, but held on to clinch a point.
And in another Serie A game, Simy Nwankwo and Joel Obi featured in Salernitana’s 3-0 loss at Lazio.
Both players were then taken off in the second half.
By James Agberebi
5 Comments
The referee was a confused one. Osimhen was pulled down inside eighteen. instead of him to award a penalty to Napoli he gave Osimhen yellow card. Even if the referee was not sure of the foul committed I was expecting him to check VAR.
Also, only one out of the two red cards to the visitor was justified.
The chinks in Napoli’s armour are beginning to widen when the the battle has barely begun.
A team with genuine intentions of winning the scudetto will first certify that they have unbreakable cohesion and are kinds of rancour in the dressing room is doused.
When players stop playing for each other or become more selfish on the field of play, this is what you get in the end: an attack that had lost its ferocity.
The chinks in Napoli’s armour are beginning to widen when the battle has barely begun.
A team with genuine intentions of winning the scudetto will first certify that they have unbreakable cohesion and that all kinds of rancour in the dressing room is doused.
When players stop playing for each other or become more selfish on the field of play, this is what you get in the end: an attack that had lost its ferocity.
I saw the game, the two red card was well deserved. I wonder why they didn’t give more red cards to those Verona players.. They came to kill and not to play football. There was a tackle on oshimen that I thought was obviously a penalty but the referee gave play on.. I was so happy oshimen didnt go injured after such a tackle. That boy is so strong to survive such tackle.. Such a referee should not officiate matches of that magnitude, he allowed the Verona players to continue to play roughly. If he had given at least penalty they would have stopped their dangerous play
Insigne may cost Napoli the title if the coach doesn’t call him to order…….I see a Steven Gerald happening to Insigne……..Club legend always want to overdo especially when they have been starved of the title for long like Liverpool then…….The Legend always wants to take the Glory…..He always thinks he is destined for it not knowing that destiny can be achieved in countless ways and through unexpected people……. That was exactly what happened to Gerald and Liverpool that year…… Liverpool broke that jinx recently easily because that generation was gone and the new generation didn’t have such burden to carry…… Insigne is overworking himself, he wants to carry all the responsibility and it may cost Napoli the title just like it did to Liverpool…….this I have observed.