Juventus vs Napoli Report
Juventus 0-2 Napoli: Cavani and Hamsik clinch Coppa Italia and dash double dreams of Turin giants
The Partenopei delivered an impeccable performance to bring the
Bianconeri to their first defeat in the 2011-2012 campaign and win their
first title in more than 20 years
Napoli have won the Coppa Italia for the fourth time in their history after a deserved 2-0 victory over Serie A champions Juventus at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.
After a tightly-contested first half, the
Partenopei hit the Bianconeri with strikes from Edinson Cavani and Marek
Hamsik after the break, as Walter Mazzarri's men extinguished the Old
Lady's hopes of a double on Alessandro Del Piero's farewell game for the
Turin giants, while also sending Antonio Conte's side to their first
defeat of the season.
Napoli got off to a wonderful start, as in
the third minute Camilo Zuniga found himself unmarked on the end of a
great cross by Hugo Campagnaro, but saw his close-range header tipped
wide by Juventus goalkeeper Marco Storari.
Moments later, Napoli
created another superb chance when Ezequiel Lavezzi released Cavani with
a exquisite pass after winning the ball from Arturo Vidal, but the
Uruguayan was flagged for offside just as he was about to pull the
trigger.
Juventus' answer came through Claudio Marchisio in the
19th minute, when the midfielder collected an Alessandro Del Piero
finish, which was blocked by Napoli's defence, and struck the ball from
well outside the box, only to see his powerful drive saved by Morgan De
Sanctis.
Just before the half-hour mark the Partenopei almost got
the opener when Hamsik fell one step short of connecting with a
floating cross by Lavezzi at the left post, much to the relief of the
Juventus faithful.
The last minutes of the first half belonged to
Juventus as Marchisio and Del Piero tested De Sanctis, but the
goalkeeper stood strong to deny the duo.
Both teams employed
conservative tactics in the beginning of the second half as the game
became increasingly scrappy. Blerim Dzemaili created a superb chance for
Napoli in the 50th minute when he whipped in a cross, which Cavani just
could not connect with in the centre of the box.
The Partenopei
would not wait long for the opener, however, as just after the hour mark
Lavezzi found himself behind Juventus' defence only to be taken down in
the penalty area by Bianconeri goalkeeper Storari.
Cavani
stepped up to convert the resulting spot-kick, sending a powerful low
effort in the right corner to give Napoli a deserved lead. This was the
Uruguayan's fifth goal in Coppa Italia this season, securing the striker
as the top scorer of the competition.
Juventus tried to get back
into the game, but were struggling to to create chances after the
opener as the Partenopei valiantly held off the Old Lady's advances.
Coach Antonio Conte decided to withdraw Del Piero in the 68th minute as
the curtain fell on the legendary striker's illustrious career with the
Bianconeri.
The tireless Vidal almost drew the game level shortly
after, but was denied by former Juventus goalkeeper De Sanctis, who did
well to parry the Chilean's thunderous volley at the right post.
In
the 74th minute Simone Pepe was rather unfortunate to see a goal-bound
finish deflected from its path as the Old Lady were tightening the grip.
But despite their best efforts, the Bianconeri were unable to break
down Napoli in the remaining time, and were punished for their
overcommitment in attack with another goal.
A quick break saw Goran Pandev release Hamsik
in a one-on-one with Storari, and the attacker made no mistake as he
slipped the ball past Storari to bring Juventus to their first loss in
their 2011-2012 campaign.
To add to the Bianconeri's misery,
Fabio Quagliarella was sent off in the final minutes of the game for
elbowing Salvatore Aronica as the Old Lady's capitulation was complete.
The victory saw the Partenopei lift the Coppa Italia for their first piece of silverware in 22 years.
Source : Goal.com
