Conte chases glory in Riyadh on Supercoppa anniversary | OneFootball

In football, as we know, superstition and coincidences don't take the field, but sometimes they create scenarios that give you chills. Antonio Conte's Napoli, after defeating Milan with a clear 2-0, has secured a spot in the Italian Super Cup final to be played in Riyadh next Monday, December 22nd. Not an ordinary date, a day marked in red on the calendar of Napoli's history.

Napoli, the superstition of December 22nd: Conte dreams of replicating Rafael and Higuain's "Night in Doha"

Exactly 11 years ago, on December 22, 2014, Napoli lifted its second Italian Super Cup at the end of one of the most thrilling and dramatic matches in its modern history. The setting was similar: the warm winter of the Middle East, that time in Doha, Qatar. The opponent was Massimiliano Allegri's Juventus, an unbeatable powerhouse in the league. That night was a novel. Regular and extra time ended 2-2, in a fierce Argentine duel between Carlos Tevez and Gonzalo Higuain. The Apache struck, the Pipita responded blow for blow, dragging the match to the penalty shootout.

And there, from the penalty spot, everything happened. An endless series of shots, mistakes (Jorginho and Tevez himself started off missing), miraculous saves, and tension at its peak. It took 18 penalties to determine a winner. The unexpected hero was Brazilian goalkeeper Rafael Cabral, who first hypnotized Chiellini and then, on the decisive penalty, flew to block Simone Padoin's shot, igniting the Neapolitan celebration thousands of kilometers from home. Today, fate offers Napoli the chance to repeat itself on the very same day. On December 22, 2025, Conte will try to emulate Rafa Benitez, aiming to bring a trophy back to the city that has been missing since that endless night in Doha.

Andrea Alati

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