Antonio Vergara scored his first Serie A goal as Napoli returned to winning ways with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Fiorentina. They are preserving their unbeaten league record at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona this season (W8, D3).
The Partenopei were looking to respond after midweek heartbreak in the UEFA Champions League. Vergara’s goal in that tie proved memorable but ultimately in vain.
The Naples native ensured it counted this time, opening the scoring after just 11 minutes. Capitalising on a loose ball, Vergara surged through on goal and calmly slotted past David de Gea to give the hosts early control.
Napoli almost doubled their lead soon after in extraordinary fashion. A frantic goalmouth scramble saw Pietro Comuzzo throw himself in the way of Rasmus Højlund’s effort before the defender inadvertently cleared the rebound onto his own post and away on the second attempt.
Fiorentina responded with growing threat and came agonisingly close to equalising when Nicolò Fagioli’s header from a deep free-kick was superbly tipped onto the post by Alex Meret. The Napoli goalkeeper followed that up moments later with an outstanding reflex save to deny Albert Gudmundsson from close range.
Despite Napoli’s dominance, the first half was not without concern for the hosts. Captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo was forced off on a stretcher, adding to an already lengthy injury list.
Napoli finished the opening period strongly, with Højlund firing narrowly into the side netting, and they carried that momentum into the second half. Fiorentina, who had failed to score before the break in 17 of their 23 league matches this season, needed a response after the restart.
Instead, Napoli struck again. Miguel Gutiérrez cut inside from the left and curled a precise effort beyond De Gea’s reach to give the hosts a two-goal cushion and put them firmly back in control.
Though Fiorentina managed to reduce the deficit later on, Napoli held on to secure a much-needed victory and restore confidence following their European disappointment.
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