Napoli e Rome they cancel each other out in the challenge valid for the 34th matchday of Serie AAt the Maradona, a great match ends 2-2, heated and exciting especially in the second half: Dybala opens the scoring with a penalty, Olivera and Osimhen (another penalty) turn the game around, then in the final minutes Abraham's precious return to goal allows the Giallorossi to return home with a point that is quite important for the race for the Champions League.
De Rossi's team rises to 59 points, remaining 4 points behind Bologna, but sees Atalanta close the gap, now only two points behind and with a game to make up. A bitter taste in the mouth for Calzona's men, who slip to 5 points behind seventh-place Lazio.
The first clear chance of the match came in the 6th minute in favor of the Giallorossi (it would be the only one of the first half), when from a corner by the usual Dybala, a pass from Mancini found Pellegrini, whose header ended just over the crossbar. After a first half of the match played at a slow pace by both teams, the Neapolitans tried to grow from the half hour mark: Osimhen tried from a tight angle, finding a save from Svilar, but was instead pardoned shortly after by Anguissa who made a mistake in a one-on-one.
In the 40th minute, Kvaratskhelia made his presence felt with his classic right-footed shot, deflected by a diving Svilar, while just moments before half-time, a header from Di Lorenzo went just wide. In the second half, Napoli continued their offensive production, but in the 56th minute, an intervention by Svilar was again decisive in preventing Lobotka from taking the lead.
A couple of minutes pass and, on the other side, it is Roma who finds the episode to unlock: Azmoun goes down in the area after contact with Jesus, the referee whistles for a penalty and Dybala converts it perfectly to make it 1-0 for the visitors. The Azzurri don't accept this and in the 64th minute, thanks to a bit of luck, they equalize with Olivera: the winger kicks with his left foot from outside the area, Kristensen deflects it and effectively puts Svilar out of action, who this time can do nothing.
The match picked up pace and the Neapolitans in particular regained their morale, coming close to taking the lead in the 73rd minute with Osimhen, who outpaced Mancini in speed but found a miraculous Svilar in front of him. In the final minutes, everything happened: Osimhen put Napoli ahead thanks to a penalty awarded after contact between Renato Sanches and Kvaratskhelia (decisive intervention by VAR), then in the 88th minute Roma found the equaliser with a header from Abraham, who scored after an aerial pass from a corner by Ndicka and celebrated after another intervention by VAR (goal initially disallowed for offside).
Article published on 28 April 2024 - 20:12
