Neapolitan tears: Cholito haunts Napoli, Torino and VAR frustrate | OneFootball

Second defeat in the last three matches for Conte's team, punished by a goal from Giovanni Simeone just after the half-hour mark. The equalizer by former PSV player Noa Lang was disallowed right at the death for offside. The Granata find their first goal and first victory in front of their own fans. The Cholito thus scores for Torino against “his” Napoli and not only does he not celebrate, but he almost apologizes with teary eyes.

Lacreme napulitane. The Cholito scores against his former team, Napoli crashes into the Toro wall and the VAR

At the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, the match valid for the seventh round of Serie A takes place between Torino and Napoli. The Azzurri, led by Antonio Conte, face a complicated game, influenced by absences and a Torino determined to bounce back after disappointing results.

Conte has to deal with several important absences: McTominay and Hojlund are out due to ankle problems and muscle fatigue. To make up for these losses, the Azzurri coach fields Lucca as the lone striker, supported by Neres on the left wing in place of the injured Politano. On the opposite flank, Spinazzola operates in tandem with Olivera.

On the other side, Baroni opts for a balanced setup. Up front, he relies on former Napoli player Simeone, partnered by Che Adams, while Ngonge, another former player in this match, starts from the bench.

Napoli starts with intensity, pressing high and immediately trying to impose their own rhythm. However, as the minutes pass, Torino grows into the game and in the 25th minute hits the post with Vlasic after a well-worked move.

Conte's team struggles to find space against the solid Granata defense and pays dearly for a defensive error: in the 39th minute, Simeone takes advantage of a lapse, beats Milinkovic coming out, and slots home the 1-0 for the hosts, scoring the most classic of “ex-player” goals. A special ex in this case, who is almost moved to tears for having “punished” his former teammates after a serious defensive lapse. In the second half, Conte tries to change the momentum of the game. Napoli pushes hard, coming close to equalizing with Spinazzola, De Bruyne, and Anguissa, but the Granata wall holds firm. In stoppage time, at the 93rd minute, Lang finds the equalizer on a rebound from Politano, but the goal is disallowed for offside. Napoli thus suffers their second consecutive away defeat, slowing their run at the top of the table. Torino, on the other hand, secures three crucial points, showing character and organization. Conte’s side pays for the lack of valid alternatives in attack and an offensive phase that is too predictable, despite good possession. Torino, for its part, confirms solidity and compactness, making the most of the only real chance of the match. And they do it in the most ironic way possible: with the goal from the ex, the kind that in some stadiums weighs like a verdict and in others sounds like a sour note in a melancholy melody. A night of real football, where romance mixes with the harshness of the result and Napoli, once again, has to dry its own lacrime napulitane.

Torino (3-5-2): Israel 6; Tameze 6.5, Maripan 6, Coco 6.5; Pedersen 6.5, Casadei 6, Asllani 6 (84′ Ismajli N/A), Vlasic 6.5 (76′ Gineitis N/A), Nkounkou 6.5 (76′ Biraghi N/A); Adams 6.5 (84′ Zapata N/A), Simeone 7 (62′ Ngonge 6). Coach: Baroni 6.5

Napoli (4-1-4-1): Milinkovic-Savic 6; Di Lorenzo 5, Beukema 5.5, Juan Jesus 5.5 (63′ Buongiorno 6), Olivera 5 (63′ Lang 6); Gilmour 6 (82′ Elmas N/A); Neres 6 (75′ Politano 6), Anguissa 6, De Bruyne 6, Spinazzola 6; Lucca 4 (75′ Ambrosino 5.5). Coach: Conte 5.

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