An early goal from Scott McTominay secured a 1-0 victory for Napoli against Cagliari in Serie A on Friday evening. This marks their fourth consecutive win, propelling them into second place in the league standings.
Napoli had secured victories in all three of their prior Serie A matches leading up to tonight’s game, each by a score of 2-1, whereas the hosts had not achieved a win in their last six outings.
McTominay found the net just over 60 seconds after returning to the starting line-up. The Scotland international opened the scoring from the game’s first corner, which was played short to Politano. The ball ricocheted around the area before the Scotland international was able to tap it in on the goalline.
The first half unfolded as a relatively balanced contest, though it had its share of scrappy moments. Conte expressed clear frustration on two occasions due to the inaccurate passes from Buongiorno and Gilmour from the back, resulting in a loss of possession that was far too easy.
Napoli’s sole other shot on target in the first half was a rather weak free-kick from Politano, whereas Cagliari nearly found the net with Sebastiano Esposito, who sent a shot skimming across the front of Vanja Milinkovic-Savic’s goal from a narrow angle.
De Bruyne nearly outsmarted Caprile with a low, powerful shot from the edge of the area, but the newly called-up Italy international managed to deflect it, allowing his defenders to clear the danger in the end.
Napoli showcased the potential of their star players as McTominay, De Bruyne, and Politano executed a series of exquisite one-touch passes in the Cagliari area. However, Caprile responded effectively, managing to block his fellow countryman just as he approached the edge of the six-yard box.
Cagliari has yet to secure a victory in any of their matches this season when they found themselves behind at halftime, and this trend continued despite their determined efforts on Friday evening.
Fabio Piscane’s winless streak has now reached seven matches, accumulating only two points during this span. Meanwhile, Conte and his team have secured four consecutive victories and currently sit in second place in the league table, with Milan set to play on Saturday.
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