Napoli completed only their fourth top-flight double over Juventus as Giacomo Raspadori’s last-gasp winner took them to a 1-0 triumph in Turin. Controversial VAR calls highlighted Sunday’s mouth-watering fixture at the Allianz Stadium as the Partenopei moved ever closer to ending a 33-year Scudetto wait.
Despite going winless in three competitive matches heading into proceedings (D2, L1), Napoli summoned the strength to overcome Massimiliano Allegri’s much-changed lineup. With a Coppa Italia semi-final decider against Inter waiting in the wings, Juventus fielded an understrength squad but were still close to taking all three points.
The home side thought they had all three points in the bag when Angel Di Maria slotted home a late goal. However, referee Michael Fabbri cut Juventus’ celebration short after finding the Argentine a fraction offside after consulting with the side-pitch monitor. Moments later, Napoli grabbed a winner through second-half substitute Raspadori to go 17 points clear at the top.
It wasn’t an eventful affair by any stretch of the imagination. But the Serie A heavyweights made it exciting in the final ten minutes as we look at the three talking points.
Raspadori Back with a Bang
Raspadori swapped Sassuolo for Napoli as one of the hottest prospects in Italian football last summer. However, an injury-plagued season in southern Italy has seen the 23-year-old make only nine league starts this season. His only Serie A goal for the Partenopei before last night was a late winner against Spezia in October.
It was a long wait, but the versatile forward made it worthwhile. With Napoli unable to break down Juventus’ well-drilled backline for most of the game, Luciano Spalletti needed a late hero to defy his woeful managerial record against the Bianconeri. And Raspadori stepped up to the plate.
The prodigious forward volleyed home a delightful cross from Elif Elmas in the 93rd minute to hand Napoli a long-overdue triumph in Turin. It was only his second league goal of the season, but he couldn’t have picked a better venue to add to his tally.
Juventus Meet Infamous Record
After a pair of one-goal margin defeats to Sassuolo and Lazio, Juventus have suffered a third straight loss in Serie A for the first time since 2011 under Luigi Delneri. Like it wasn’t enough, another scoring blank saw the Bianconeri go back-to-back top-flight games without scoring for the first time since 2012.
Allegri’s penchant for ‘winning ugly’ has turned him into an unpopular figure in Turin, and matching these unwanted records will provide Juventus fans with more material to voice their frustration over his managerial tenure.
Despite an underwhelming spell of form, the record-time Serie A champions will welcome the next round three points clear of fifth-placed Milan.
VAR Casts Shadow on Napoli Win
As with every other derby match in Italy, this was an arduous undertaking to officiate for Fabbri. Unfortunately for the 38-year-old referee, it’s hard to say he was up to the task. Both sides found themselves on the receiving end of his strange calls.
In addition to disallowing Di Maria’s goal, Fabbri missed an opportunity to penalize Juventus defender Federico Gatti for punching Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the face late in the first half. The referee failed to spot the controversial moment, otherwise, it could’ve been a straight red for the young center-back.
He was under pressure to hand Juventus a late penalty as Juan Cuadrado went down in the box. But instead of revising the situation, he waved play on, with Napoli scoring on the other end.
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