Napoli-Milan 0-4: Azzurri asleep, Leao punishes them

NAPLES – The evening in which Napoli became too neo-melodic and Milan too rap, the evening in which only the fans (and goalkeeper Meret) wore the Osimhen masks instead of the injured copyright holder replaced by Simeone, the evening in which the sprinter rapper Leao scored again in the Rossoneri shirt after two and a half months and exaggerated with a brace, the evening in which Brahim Diaz disguised himself as Kvaratskhelia inside a stadium with more sheets than Georgia than in Tbilisi, the the championship has not turned upside down: the Scudetto is already almost Neapolitan. However, the prediction for the imminent duel in the quarter-finals of the Champions League has certainly changed: a 4-0 is never irrelevant. And precisely because this last championship match between the two most European Italian teams was not a technical test of Europe, but a technical test and that’s it, the unexpected and sensational outcome cannot fail to cast its shadows on the two matches who, in 9 days at San Siro-Meazza and then in another 6 days at San Paolo-Maradona, will decide who will play in the semi-final of the most important club tournament in the world, against Inter or Benfica.

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It’s not clear if Napoli took this dangerous preview lightly, but Milan certainly took it seriously, as they can’t lose sight of the standings and the piled up for fourth place. Pioli wanted to demonstrate that the furrow dug by the previous 27 days was misleading, made up of 23 points and 20 fewer goals scored, as well as 20 more goals conceded than Spalletti. In the first leg in Milan Napoli was more or less the same: even then Osimhen was out due to injury and the decisive goal at 1-1, after the relay with Raspadori, was scored by Simeone. But this time in just 25 minutes, after Simeone’s initial waste, Meret had already conceded a couple of goals, the effect of the only two line-up changes compared to Milan in September, when Leao was suspended and Diaz remained on the bench until halfway through the second half.

Here, with the ineffable Rafa and Brahim both very present at the start to the left and to the right of Krunic, a false attacking midfielder à la Kessié, things went differently. The first goal was made by Diaz, with a veronica in midfield between Lobotka and Mario Rui and then with the through ball for Leao’s designer lob. The second goal was created by Leao, tearing apart the opposing defense with a classic conversion that freed Bennacer in the cross, on which Diaz’s swerve on Mario Rui prepared the left foot made fatal by Kim’s touch. The third goal, in the absence of Diaz who came out with a bandage on his right leg (the alarm is contained, but evident), inspired Tonali in the first part of the second half, uprooting a ball and inviting Leao to his art: double step running from left and right shaking. The fourth goal, while it was at it, was invented by Diaz’s replacement: generally accused of grayness, Saelemaekers improvised a Shiffrin-like slalom.

In the meantime, Napoli hadn’t stood idly by, which is not at all consoling for Spalletti: without Osimhen in the area, the search for a mass attack led to the fatal imbalance exploited by Milan, who found themselves perfectly in the restored classic form (the 4-2-3-1) and came close to scoring three more times, while Raspadori’s entry lit up a dull department just a little. The difference, on the whole, appeared to be both tactical and athletic. The chorus “Oi vita, oi vita mia” mockingly sang the AC Milan curve. Those of Napoli have remained silent in protest against the expensive tickets, against the strict regulation of use of the stadium and against the president De Laurentiis. In the Champions League in Milan we start again from 0-0, but not so much.

Naples-Milan 0-4 (0-2).
Naples (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Kim (35′ st Juan Jesus), Mario Rui; Anguissa, Lobotka (22′ st Ndombele), Zielinski (22′ st Elmas); Politano (22′ st Lozano), Simeone (31′ st Raspadori), Kvaratskhelia.
All.: Spalletti.
Milan (4-2-3-1): Maignan; Calabria, Kjaer, Tomori, Hernandez; Tonali, Bennacer (38′ St Bakayoko); Diaz (11′ st Saelemaekers), Krunic (38′ st De Ketelaere), Leao (28′ st Rebic); Giroud (28′ st Orii). All.: Pioli.
Referee: Rapuan of Rimini.
Networks: in the pt 16′ Leao, 25′ Diaz; in the st 14′ Leao, 21′ Saelemaekers.
Corners: 11-3 for Naples.
Recovery: 4′ and 2′.
Ammonites: Giroud, Lobotka, Krunic for foul play.
Spectators: 50 thousand.