Napoli and Inter played out a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in a real clash of Serie A titans on Sunday night. Napoli took the lead after an epic blunder from Samir Handanovic but were pegged back inside the opening ten minutes of the second half as Christian Eriksen scored a screamer. A cautious approach from both managers saw this highly-anticipated fixture offer too little in terms of action-packed football. So here are our Player Ratings for the top-five encounter between Napoli and Inter.
Napoli XI
Alex Meret – 6.5
The 24-year-old Italian, who slotted in for injured David Ospina, was barely tested, with the woodwork saving him twice in the first half. To his credit, there was not much he could do about Christian Eriksen’s perfectly placed 55th-minute effort.
Mario Rui – 6
Tasked with confronting one of the fastest players in Serie A, the Portuguese left-back did enough to keep Achraf Hakimi at bay. Although he offered too little in the front third, Rui enjoyed a decent game overall.
Konstantinos Manolas – 7
The Greek centre-back did his best to keep Meret safe and sound, barely putting a foot wrong throughout the 90 minutes. The 29-year-old pulled off a heroic intervention in the final seconds of the match to deny Hakimi’s pass to Romelu Lukaku.
Kalidou Koulibaly – 7
The Senegalese giant spent the entire match wrestling with Lukaku and managed to prevent the Belgian star from scoring. As ever, the 29-year-old provided composure and confidence from the back.
Giovanni Di Lorenzo – 6.5
Tireless overlapping runs down the right flank to offer depth in the attacking third and create spaces for Matteo Politano highlighted the right-back’s vivid performance. However, Matteo Darmian escaped from his sight for a split-second, which nearly led to Inter’s opener in the first half.
Fabian Ruiz – 6.5
Once again able to dictate the pace of the match with his pinpoint passing and perfect decision-making, the Spaniard was a beating heart of Gennaro Gattuso’s side. He was the focal point of every Napoli attack and even had a couple of attempts towards Samir Handanovic’s door early in the game.
Diego Demme – 6.5
Not as effective in attack as he might like, the German still put up some high-octane showing to win a lot of possession in the center of the park. Very aware of what’s around him, he drew numerous fouls while displaying a modest passing range.
Matteo Politano – 7
Nearly decided the encounter in the 84th minute after dancing his way past the entire Inter defense but had the crossbar to blame he didn’t upset his former side. The 27-year-old enjoyed plenty of ball at his feet but often struggled to dribble past Darmian.
Piotr Zielinski – 6
The Polish box-to-box midfielder kept Napoli ticking over and over again and was close to winning a penalty in the dying moments of the showdown.
Lorenzo Insigne – 6.5
After refusing to give up on a loose ball, the captain forced a silly mistake from Handanovic to put his side ahead. Except for that 36th-minute effort, the Italian dynamo failed to produce something meaningful in the final third.
Victor Osimhen – 5.5
Endless running and a lot of desire but virtually nothing to show for portray the Nigerian’s showing tonight. Despite his constant movements between the lines, the club’s record signing didn’t get to test the Inter keeper.
Napoli Substitutes
Dries Mertens – 5
Came on at the expense of Osimhen, the Partenopei all-time top-scorer was invisible as Napoli struggled to break down the stubborn Inter defense.
Elif Elmas – N/A
Elseid Hysaj – N/A
Tiemoué Bakayoko – N/A
Inter XI
Samir Handanovic – 5
Though it looked like a routine save, the experienced shot-stopper spilled the ball in front of confused Stefan de Vrij to give away a cheap goal. Apart from that, the Slovenia stalwart faced no real threat.
Alessandro Bastoni – 6.5
Another promising showing from the young centre-back, who made light work of his duel with Osimhen.
Stefan de Vrij – 6.5
At first glance, it seemed that he gave away a penalty in the 82nd minute, but it turned out the Dutchman timed his tackle on Zielinski to perfection. That pretty much sums up his impressive evening.
Milan Skriniar – 6
The Slovakian offered an aerial presence and tough tackling but let Insigne charge past him for Napoli’s opener.
Marcelo Brozovic – 6.5
Keeping it simple, dropping as deep as possible, and giving away fouls. That probably best describes the Croat’s solid but rather uncreative display at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Nicolo Barella – 6.5
Full of running as always, the Italian youngster worked his socks off and came close to leveling the score on the stroke of half-time, but his first touch let him own.
Christian Eriksen – 6.5
The Danish playmaker was the one to help Inter avoid defeat in Naples, but other than the goal, he struggled to put his stamp on proceedings. Often outrun by Demme, the former Tottenham star had almost no impact on his side’s build-up play.
Matteo Darmian – 5
Water-tight at the back but sloppy in possession, the 31-year-old could and should have done better in the 28th minute after breaking one-on-one with Meret. A lack of energy and capacity to keep up with Politano in the second half saw Conte sub him off in the 68th minute.
Achraf Hakimi – 5.5
Certainly not the Moroccan’s brightest performance this season, especially in the attacking sense. Although he did his job defensively, the highly-rated wing-back was nowhere to be seen going forward.
Lautaro Martinez – 5.5
The Argentine was lucky to avoid booking for a clumsy challenge on Koulibaly in the opening stage. It is the only noteworthy takeaway from the 23-year-old’s quiet night.
Romelu Lukaku – 7
Lady Luck was not on the Belgian’s side tonight. The 27-year-old came close to scoring twice in the opening 45 minutes but was denied by the frame on both occasions.
Inter Substitutes
Ivan Perisic – 5.5
The former Bayern Munich winger has adjusted to a more defensive role under Antonio Conte and once again demonstrated he can defend with dignity.
Alexis Sanchez – 5.5
The Chilean offered no upgrade on Lautaro since coming on in the 75th minute, hardly touching the ball in this cameo appearance.