Torino 1-3 Napoli
Super Lorenzo Insigne was on target twice today as Napoli won well against Torino to go joint top of the league table, for a while anyway.
Having pushed Juventus so hard for the league title last season, we saw plenty of signs at the Olimpico di Torino Stadium to suggest Napoli are more than ready to take up the fight again.
They dominated for long periods of the game, going ahead through Insigne and Simone Verdi before Andrea Belotti pulled one back from the spot. But the brilliant Insigne put paid to any thoughts of a comeback.
Napoli haven’t been overly impressive in the opening weeks of Serie A, but they have ground out results and this one was more like the old Napoli.
Highlights of the game
Carlo Ancelotti’s team is dripping with attacking talent, and they put Torino to the sword from the off.
It only took the visitors four minutes to silence the Turin crowd with their opener. It was Insigne’s first of the day, and when he found himself with time and space in the middle of the box, he slammed his shot into the top left corner to give Torino keeper Salvatore Sirigu absolutely no chance.
Walter Mazzarri’s team looked shell-shocked and Napoli could smell blood as it was one-way traffic with the Azzurri swarming forward and peppering Sirigu. New signing Simone Verdi and Marek Hamsik both had good efforts within the first quarter of an hour. Verdi is hoping to make his mark after his summer switch from Bologna where he had scored 16 goals in 62 appearances.
Kalidou Koulibaly also tested the Torino keeper, but the home side’s resistance broke down again on 20 minutes when Verdi got the reward for his early endeavour. Dries Mertens crossed and the striker slotted the ball low into the corner to make it two.
That sparked a bit of a response from the hosts, prompted by Simone Zaza who brought a save from David Ospina after the Napoli keeper had spent the first 20 minutes watching the game from a distance. And Soualiho Meite was busy on the flanks while Alex Berenguer and Daniel Baselli both had attempts on goal.
The momentum continued to swing the way of the hosts at the beginning of the second half, and they were handed a huge opportunity to get back into the game on 50 minutes when Berenguer was felled in the box by Sebastiano Luperto—the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.
Torino’s main striker Andrea Belotti took the chance, side-footing coolly into the bottom right corner to half the deficit.
Poland international Piotr Zielinski scored twice in the early season thriller against Milan, and Ancelotti brought him on immediately to replace Verdi. He made an immediate impact, setting up Jose Callejon who saw his shot bounce back off the left-hand post.
Torino’s reprieve, however, was short-lived as Insigne slammed his second goal low into the corner to make it 1-3.
Insigne almost scored his hat-trick when Hamsik fed him, but his shot was well saved in the corner by Sirigu. And Hamsik himself could have made it four but Sirigu again saved well.
Key statistics
Napoli started like a house on fire but by the end of the half, Torino had begun to find their way into the game. The shot count at the break had Napoli with their noses in front by eight to six, and enjoying the lion’s share of possession with 53 percent.
The hosts began the second half well, but after getting back into the game, the pattern of play settled back in Napoli’s favour again as they ran out worthy winners. By the end of the match, the Azzurri had 16 shots to eight and Torino had only tested the Napoli keeper twice in the 95 minutes.
It was a first defeat in four for Torino, but with only one win, Mazzarri’s team is in the bottom half of the table. Meanwhile, the visitors have now made it four wins from five.
We watch Napoli very closely for our SBOBET tips and still believe they are probably the biggest threat to Juventus’ domination of Serie A.
What’s next?
With a good win in the bank, Carlo Ancelotti and his players could sit back and wait for the other Serie A 2018 results of the weekend to roll in, particularly at Frosinone where Juventus are on the hunt for a fifth successive win.
The sixth round of Serie A sees Napoli hosting newly promoted Parma next week, in a game which Serie A 2018 betting fans will expect the Azzurri to win.
Torino make the trip to Atalanta, which is never easy, and Mazzarri has some work to do to rebuild his side’s confidence.
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