📸 Chaos at Marassi: 92nd-minute penalty and Napoli win with ten men! 😱 | OneFootball

The match at Marassi was incredible, a real nail-biter in every sense of the word, experienced in suspense from the first to the last second.

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Napoli clinched victory in the dying moments, finding success from the penalty spot despite being down to ten men. The penalty came from a move by Antonio Vergara, one of the standout players of recent matches. A sensational and hugely important triumph in the race for the Scudetto, keeping the Azzurri’s hopes alive.

The start was a nightmare for Napoli, who went behind after just eleven seconds: Buongiorno made a shocking back pass, Vitinha pounced, Meret brought him down, and after a VAR check, Massa awarded a penalty. Genoa took the lead immediately, but the Azzurri reacted with character and turned things around in just a few minutes: first Hojlund was quickest to react to Bijlow’s save, then McTominay unleashed a thunderous shot from outside the box to make it 1-2 and complete the comeback.

The match, however, remained tense and full of incidents. McTominay, the protagonist of the turnaround, suffered a problem with his right glute after his goal and gritted his teeth until halftime, when Conte was forced to substitute him. In the second half, another decisive moment arrived: Buongiorno made his second major error of the match, lost the ball under pressure, and opened the way for Colombo, who scored the equalizer. Shortly after, Conte called him to the bench, consoling him along with the entire staff.

In the final minutes, more drama unfolded: Juan Jesus capped off a bad day for the defense by holding back Ekuban on a counterattack, received a second yellow, and was sent off, leaving Napoli with ten men.

When everything seemed decided, the final twist arrived: in stoppage time, Napoli were awarded a penalty for a foul by Cornet on Vergara. Initially, Massa let play continue, but after being called to the on-field review, he changed his decision and awarded the penalty in the dying seconds. Hojlund stepped up, his first ever attempt in the top 5 European leagues: the shot wasn’t perfect, but it was enough to slip the ball under Bijlow’s arm. The Napoli bench went wild.

A movie-like ending at Marassi, a real horror for Genoa who, just like against Lazio, lost again to a penalty in the final minutes.

⚠️ CORNET ON VERGARA, MASSA AWARDS PENALTY AFTER OFR AND HOJLUND SCORES WINNER

90'+ - Napoli are awarded a penalty in the last minute of stoppage time for a foul by Cornet on Vergara.

Initially, Massa did not give the penalty, but after being called to the on-field review, he changed his decision and awarded a dramatic penalty in the final moments.

Hojlund stepped up, having never taken a penalty in Serie A before: he didn’t strike it well, but it was enough to get the ball under Bijlow’s arm and send everyone into a frenzy. An INCREDIBLE ending at Marassi: Napoli win despite being a man down and right at the death.

🟥 JUAN JESUS LEAVES NAPOLI WITH 10 MEN!

76' - Conte was about to take him off for Olivera, but Juan Jesus picked up a second yellow, leaving Napoli with ten men.

Clear holding on Ekuban during a counterattack: he was already booked and picked up a second yellow, then the red. A needless foul in midfield that left Napoli shorthanded. Luca Marelli, on DAZN commentary, expressed some doubts about the first yellow card given to Juan Jesus.

🔁 CONTE SUBS OFF BUONGIORNO: AZZURRO ALMOST IN TEARS

Conte intervenes and takes off Buongiorno: Beukema comes on in his place. The defender is nonetheless comforted by the coach, Lele Oriali, and the entire Napoli bench. DAZN reports that the Azzurro, right after his second mistake, was almost in tears, lifting his shirt to his face to hide.

⚽ BUONGIORNO, ANOTHER DISASTER: COLOMBO SCORES

57' - One mistake can be forgiven, but not a second: Alessandro Buongiorno’s performance is truly unacceptable at this level.

After the back pass that led to Genoa’s penalty, this time he lost the ball under pressure from Colombo. The Rossoblù striker stole it, raced towards goal, and beat Meret with a left-footed shot across goal.

🚑 MCTOMINAY INJURED: SUB AT HALFTIME

35’ – A delicate situation for Napoli, who lose McTominay to a right glute injury. As DAZN highlights, Conte approached the Scot and asked how he was: McTominay replied that he felt a twinge when he struck the shot that made it 1-2. The coach asked him to hold on until halftime, then made a sarcastic joke: «Soon I’ll play myself». During the break, the change was made: Giovane came on, and the Scot watched the rest of the match from the bench.

🧴❄️ MCTOMINAY CURIOSITY: HE "TREATS" HIMSELF AND SCORES

McTominay, in the move that led to the equalizer, took a knock to his right foot but gritted his teeth and stayed on. He limped, the referee invited him to go off, but he asked Elmas for the ice spray can, applied it himself, and immediately handed it back to the bench. Moments later, with that same foot, he unleashed the rocket that completed the comeback.

⚽⚽ HOJLUND-MCTOMINAY, NAPOLI TURN IT AROUND!

20' and 22' - Not even two minutes, and first Hojlund, then McTominay, turned the game around for Napoli: what a match at Marassi!

The Dane returned to scoring after his brace against Cremonese at the end of December: perfect run by McTominay on the right-center, he entered the box and shot diagonally, Bijlow saved, and on the rebound Hojlund, quickest of all, slotted it in.

Seconds later, McTominay received the ball centrally, set himself, and unleashed a thunderous right foot from over twenty meters: the ball flashed past Bijlow’s right, who could do nothing. No time to regroup and Napoli were already ahead: 1-2. The Scot ran towards the bench and everyone rushed to embrace him.

😱 SHOCK START: BUONGIORNO DISASTER, MERET CONCEDES PENALTY

After just eleven seconds, the incident that gave Genoa a penalty. 

Buongiorno made a huge blunder: his back pass was short and opened the door for Vitinha, who broke through on the left side of the box. Meret came out late, there was contact, and the Genoa striker went down. Massa immediately pointed to the spot, then went to VAR and after checking the monitor confirmed his decision: penalty, and a yellow for the keeper.

"Massa signals for a goal kick, not a penalty, so the VAR review was not to revoke the penalty, but to award it. That said, this is the incident. In fact, Vitinha drags his legs a bit, but you also have to consider Meret’s movement, who comes in completely late, stretches his right leg in front of Vitinha and therefore, after reviewing this episode, especially from the rear camera, we can say this penalty is correct, as is the decision. The yellow card was wrong because it wasn’t DOGSO, but at most a general SPA, so penalty without disciplinary sanction" is the opinion of Luca Marelli, DAZN’s refereeing expert.

From the spot, Malinovskyi was perfect and put Genoa ahead.

🗣 CONTE: "LUKAKU? I WON'T FORCE IT"

Antonio Conte spoke after Daniele De Rossi to DAZN microphones: "Genoa have found a lot of enthusiasm at home. We lose one and get one back, Di Lorenzo is fundamental on and off the pitch, but Rrahmani returns. We lost Giovanni for almost two months, so I want to see a reaction from the team, to rise to the challenge in difficult times. Lukaku? He’s been out since mid-August, he needs to get back into rhythm. We need patience. How many minutes does he have? He has to tell me, I can’t force it. De Rossi? In my opinion, he’s destined for greatness". 

🗣 DE ROSSI: "CONTE IS A LEGEND"

Daniele De Rossi spoke to DAZN before the match: "After the performances in recent games, the boys would really deserve the win, even though I don’t think Napoli would agree. Conte? The most surprising thing about him as a coach is his consistency. He’s a great manager and it will be emotional to face him. Amorim? We looked for a modern, dynamic, aggressive playmaker for a long time. I’d like to put him in front of the defense and I will".

🧢 LOBOTKA CAPTAIN: FIRST TIME IN SERIE A

With Giovanni Di Lorenzo absent, the captain’s armband today will be worn by Stanislav Lobotka. It’s the first time ever in Serie A for the Slovak midfielder, although he already wore it for Napoli in the Coppa Italia against Palermo last season. 

✅ OFFICIAL LINEUPS

GENOA (3-5-2): Bijlow; Marcandalli, Østigård, Vásquez; Norton-Cuffy, Malinovskyi, Ellertsson, Frendrup, Martín; Vitinha, Colombo.

NAPOLI (3-4-2-1): Meret; Rrahmani, Buongiorno, Juan Jesus; Gutiérrez, Lobotka, McTominay, Spinazzola; Vergara, Elmas; Højlund.  

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.

📸 ISABELLA BONOTTO - AFP or licensors