A strong Napoli side beat European champions Liverpool 2-0 on the first day of the Champions League group stage. Goals from Dries Mertens (penalty) and Fernando Llorente (first goal for Italy) in the second half allowed Carlo Ancelotti's team to get their European adventure off to a great start, the result of a high-profile performance against the reigning champions. A Napoli that played with great maturity, facing Liverpool's very strong attack head on and without fear. At the same time, the Azzurri proved cynical in punishing the Reds at their best moment, unleashing the euphoria of an entire nation. It couldn't have gone better. For the seasonal debut in Europe, Ancelotti lines up a courageous 4-2-4 and proposes Manolas in defence alongside Koulibaly, Allan in midfield with Fabian Ruiz. There is no Maksimovic but Di Lorenzo on the right, with Mario Rui on the left. The Italian coach confirms Lozano alongside Mertens up front, with Insigne and Callejon on the wings. At Liverpool, Klopp relies on the usual 4-3-3 with the wonder trident of Salah, Firmino and Mané. Henderson and Milner are back in midfield. Napoli started off strong, with Fabian Ruiz testing Adrian twice with powerful shots. On that occasion, a goal by Lozano was disallowed for offside. The Azzurri were more maneuverable, while Liverpool were more inclined to verticalization due to the lightning-fast counterattacks of Salah and Manè. It was the Senegalese striker who had the second great chance of the evening in the 20th minute, thwarting Meret. The impression is that of a match that at any moment could explode into a whirlwind of goals and emotions. As long as we can get past two true defensive phenomena like Koulibaly and Van Dijk. As the minutes passed, Liverpool's pressure increased, with the team increasingly present in the Azzurri's half. The flashes of the three 'little ones' Lozano, Insigne and Mertens are not enough for Napoli. The Reds defense never lets itself be surprised. Before the break, Liverpool came very close to scoring, first with a counterattack by Milner thwarted by Mario Rui, then from the following corner with a header by Milner that went just wide. At the start of the second half, Napoli came close to taking the lead with Mertens, with Adrian's diving save using his hand to call the ball to the ball being a miracle. The San Paolo's scream was strangled in the throat. Napoli continued to attack, but ended up leaving themselves open to counterattacks from the usual Mané and Salah. The two break away two against one in the 54th minute, but the Senegalese's assist for the Egyptian is too long. A glaring opportunity missed by the Reds. The Pharaoh tries again in the 65th minute with a left-footed diagonal shot that is perfectly thwarted by Meret, an opportunity created by a sensational misdirection by Manolas. With half an hour to go, Ancelotti takes off Insigne and brings on Zielinski, also bringing on Llorente for Lozano and Elmas for an exhausted Allan. Klopp replies with Wijnaldum for Milner. At 73′ Liverpool still dangerous with Mané, Meret is there. Just when they were suffering the most, Ancelotti's team took the lead in the 81st minute with a penalty from Mertens. Robertson's foul on Callejon was also confirmed by VAR. Klopp tries to remedy the situation, bringing on Shaqiri in place of Henderson. Spurred on by the 50 at the San Paolo, Napoli defended with order and even found the second goal with Llorente in injury time. Very important victory.
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