After a 3-0 defeat in the Serie A opener, SSC Napoli had recently stabilized – and are now at the top of the pile. The 2-0 win over Monza on matchday 6 lifted the southern Italians to the top of the table.
Although the start of the season had been a bit of a bumpy ride for new Napoli coach Antonio Conte, the southern Italian club with a long tradition quickly recovered and bagged four wins in five competitive games with only one goal conceded. Most recently, a 5-0 win in the cup and a 0-0 draw against Juventus, who are still the only team not to concede a goal.
It goes without saying that Conte demanded the next sense of achievement from his protégés in the duel with cellar-dweller Monza.
The Partenopei didn’t sparkle with creativity and finishing fire, but rather approached the task with a cool head. The defense around captain di Lorenzo or the central defenders Rrahmani and Buongiorno basically didn’t let anything slip through them for the entire duration of the game, while they waited for mistakes up front.
Kvaratskhelia confirm strong form
And there were mistakes, or rather gifts from the guests from Lombardy. Starting in minute 22: Politano, driving in from the right, was given the entire lane to the inside with an involuntary one-two with an opponent, so that the technician only had to push the ball into the far corner from a tight angle to take the lead 1-0.
In the 33rd minute, Monza’s team then served the Neapolitans the decisive 2-0. That could not please AC coach Alessandro Nesta, himself once a world-class defender and 2006 World Cup winner. What happened this time? After a catastrophic opening pass from AC keeper Turati, Zambo Anguissa seized the ball, laid it off for Politano, who found the unmarked McTominay with a long ball. His shot was blocked, but only as far as the feet of the clinical Kvaratskhelia, who pounced. The Georgian, who was also a face of the sporting decline last season, scored his third goal in six league games – a further sign that things can only improve in Naples under Conte.
For the moment, because the home side comfortably held on to a 2-0 lead and Lukaku (53rd) and substitute David Neres (90th) both missed good opportunities to make it 3-0, the SSC even moved up to first place in the Serie A table, ahead of Juventus and the two Milan clubs. Monza remained stuck deep down with a meager three points.