Going into the match against AS Roma, Napoli players' morale was severely affected, especially after they had just lost 0-4 at home to Frosinone on December 19 in the Coppa Italia. The away team was also disadvantaged when 3 important players in the squad, Jesper Lindstrom, Mathias Olivera and Eljif Elmas, could not play. The only joy for the reigning Serie A champions was that they had just successfully kept the team's number 1 star - Victor Osimhen until June 2026.
For AS Roma, Romelu Lukaku and Nicola Zalewski returned from suspension, but Paulo Dybala, Houssem Aouar, Chris Smalling, Marash Kumbulla and Tammy Abraham were still injured. In addition, Renato Sanches - a player rumored to have had a conflict with coach Mourinho - was not even registered to play.
The heat of the match started in the first half when the coaching staff of both teams continuously reacted and exchanged words. In the 38th minute, both coach Mourinho and coach Walter Mazzarri received yellow cards for disagreements. In addition, the "Special One" also pulled the shirt and demanded respect from Napoli's two stars, Victor Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia, many times.
Coach Mourinho constantly reminds Napoli players
The turning point of the match came in the 66th minute when Matteo Politano was sent off with a straight red card. The Italian was fouled by Zalewski but instead of ignoring the situation and taking a quick free kick, he acted unsportsmanlike towards the AS Roma player. Just 10 minutes after Matteo Politano's red card, AS Roma found the opening goal with a beautiful kick from Lorenzo Pellegrini.
While struggling to find an equalizer, things got worse for Napoli when they had to play with 9 men on the field because Victor Osimhen received a red card. Just waiting for that, AS Roma easily controlled the game and in the 90+6 minute, Lukaku sealed a 2-0 victory for the maroon team.
Victor Osimhen left Napoli with only 9 men
Coach Mourinho beamed in his press conference with DAZN: "Unfortunately, this match changed the mood of the players and the coaching staff of AS Roma. I spoke to the boys about this, we also need to bring a happy festival to the fans.
AS Roma were able to get close to where we wanted to be, it was difficult, you can disagree, but my feeling was after five minutes we would have won. We controlled everything and there was no reason not to win. Obviously, with 10 men, we scored the goal and made the most of the situation, as well as the changes we made and the way our players interpreted the game. I think we fully deserved it.”
The important victory over Napoli helped AS Roma gain 28 points, surpassing Napoli (27 points) to stand at 6th place. Meanwhile, the future of coach Walter Mazzarri - who only became Napoli's coach 2 months ago - is becoming unstable after a series of not-so-positive results recently.
AS Roma has officially surpassed Napoli on the rankings.
In the previous match between Juventus and Frosinone, the "Old Lady" also had the joy of winning 2-1 right on the opponent's field. Notably, the 18-year-old and much-attentioned Turkish player - Kenan Yıldız brought the opening goal. The remaining goal of Juventus in this match was scored by Dusan Vlahovic.
Meanwhile, in the late match between Inter Milan and Lecce, the Milan team also had a comfortable 2-0 victory to continue to maintain a 4-point gap with Juventus. Inter Milan currently has 44 points, Juventus has 40 points.
The home team at Giuseppe Meazza dominated the game from the very beginning but had to wait until the end of the first half for Yann Aurel Bisseck to take the lead. In the second half, Nicolo Barella doubled the lead after a classy combination.
Nicolo Barella celebrates after sealing victory for Inter Milan
The away team Lecce did not make any impression in the match against Inter Milan. Not only that, they also had to suffer the disadvantage when at the end of the match, striker Lameck Banda was sent off the field for protesting.
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