Napoli showed great character to fight back from a goal down to clinch a narrow 2-1 victory over struggling Genoa at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, extending their unbeaten H2H home run in Serie A to 16 matches (W10, D6).
The reigning Serie A champions started the contest full of intent, with David Neres carving out an inviting cross for Matteo Politano to attack at the far post, only for the winger to blaze harmlessly over the crossbar.
However, Napoli were unable to build upon their bright start, as the chances dried up in a frustrating first period against a Genoa side that was content to adopt a compact defensive structure.
Yet, while the visitors’ onus was on defending, Jeff Ekhator took full advantage of a sight of goal just past the half-hour mark, producing a deft flick from Brooke Norton-Cuffy’s low cross to end his year-long wait for a Serie A goal.
However, Napoli’s mood took a turn for the worse when key midfielder Stanislav Lobotka was forced off just before the break, while Genoa would have been ecstatic to boast a half-time lead for the first time in Serie A this season.
In search of inspiration, Napoli boss Antonio Conte turned to his bench not long after the restart, introducing full-back Leonardo Spinazzola and playmaker Kevin De Bruyne.
It was a switch straight out of a title-winning manager’s playbook, as the former played a key role in Napoli’s 57th-minute equaliser, seeing his cross force Johan Vasquez into a desperate interception, which dropped kindly for Frank Anguissa to head home.
Now with momentum in their favour, Napoli ramped up the pressure on their visitors in search of a crucial winner. Spearheading that thrust for maximum points, Rasmus Hojlund saw an effort chalked off for offside, before Giovanni Di Lorenzo crashed a header against the woodwork.
Try as Genoa did to resist the relentless blue waves, they ultimately proved too much for Il Grifone, who fell behind when Hojlund pounced on a rebound from Anguissa’s saved shot to secure all three points.
Since the start of 2024/25, Napoli now have an impressive win rate of 60% from home league games they’ve trailed at HT (W3, D1, L1), which can only act as a huge warning sign for any visitors that dare to provoke them into action. As for today’s success, it sends Napoli top for the time being, while winless Genoa remain in the drop zone.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Frank Anguissa (Napoli)