Napoli continued their winning streak with a resounding 4-0 victory at Cagliari, securing their third consecutive league victory and temporarily moving to first place in the standings. The Azzurri now have nine points, awaiting Inter's match against Monza.
The match at Unipol Domus was decided by goals from Di Lorenzo in the 18th minute, Kvaratskhelia in the 66th minute, Lukaku in the 70th minute and Buongiorno in the 93rd minute, in a match also characterised by tension in the stands. The match opened with a first chance for Napoli in the 4th minute, when Politano, served by Lukaku, kicked wide.
The Neapolitans unlocked the match in the 18th minute with captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo: a persistent action brought the ball to his feet on the edge of the area, and his shot deflected by the rossoblù defender Mina deceived the goalkeeper Scuffet. Cagliari immediately tried to react with a dangerous shot from Azzi in the 20th minute, but Meret was ready and deflected it into a corner.
In the 27th minute, the game was interrupted for seven minutes due to disturbances among the fans, with the throwing of smoke bombs and firecrackers that also ended up on the pitch, forcing the stewards to intervene. Once the moment of tension had passed, the match resumed, and in the 34th minute Cagliari came close to equalising with a header from Mina following a corner kick, but the Azzurri defence held firm.
At the end of the first half, Piccoli almost equalized with a header blocked by Meret, while in the 44th minute Kvaratskhelia tried to double the score, but his shot was deflected into a corner. In the second half, Cagliari started strong with a double chance: in the 50th minute, Luperto headed the ball, finding a super Meret to save his team once again.
Luvumbo, on the rebound, sends the ball just wide. In the 57th minute, Marin makes Napoli tremble with a long-range shot that hits the crossbar after a slight deflection by the goalkeeper.
Napoli definitively took control of the match in the 66th minute with Kvaratskhelia, served in depth by Lukaku, who one-on-one with Scuffet made no mistake and scored the second goal. Shortly after, in the 70th minute, the third goal arrived: a glaring error by Scuffet gifted the ball to the Georgian, who served Lukaku for the easy tap-in.
With the match now in hand, the Neapolitan coach Antonio Conte makes a series of changes to manage the energy, inserting McTominay, Simeone and Gilmour. Nicola also responds with his substitutions, but Cagliari is unable to get back into the game.
In the third minute of injury time, Napoli finally sealed the deal with their fourth goal: Buongiorno, following a corner kick taken by Neres, rose to the top of the table and headed the ball to make it 4-0.
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