Cagliari held Napoli 3–3 at the San Paolo on Sunday afternoon in Serie A. The draw prevented Napoli’s from notching up their third successive Serie A victory as Cagliari gained a valuable point at the San Paolo.
Gonzalo Higuain grabbed the opening goal for Napoli early into the match, before Gokhan Inler made it 2–0 by the half hour. Cagliari cut the hosts’ lead in half through Victor Ibarbo before the half-time whistle. Diego Farias would equalize in the second half for Zdeneck Zeman’s side. Farias’ goal triggered a fast-and-furious five-minute period, as Jonathan De Guzman headed Napoli back into the lead, but only for Farias to level once more and salvage a point for the Rossoblu.
Napoli took control of the proceedings early on, monopolizing possession. The opening goal came on 11 minutes, when Faouzi Ghoulam found Higuain with a long ball over the top. The in-form striker latched onto the pass and ghosted past Luca Rossettini before cooly finishing.
Napoli doubled their lead soon after though, on 30 minutes. The movement started down the right as Christian Maggio crossed in for De Guzman. This time it was Alessio Cragno who denied the Dutchman’s volley. Just as danger seemed to have been cleared, Inler picked up the ball outside the area and fired from an outrageous 35 meters out. The Swiss’ powerful low drive fizzed past Cragno and into the bottom corner.
Cagliari, who had been chasing shadows and barely created a chance, finally cut the lead in half through Ibarbo on 38 minutes. The hulking Colombian stepped past Kalidou Koulibaly before firing into the bottom corner. Although Cagliari had been thoroughly dominated, they were at least able to take the narrow scoreline into half-time.
Cagliari made the best of the momentum shift on the return from half-time. From the free-kick, Rossettini headed the ball down for the onrushing Diego Farias; the Brazilian made no mistake and nodded home from close range to equalize on 47 minutes. Farias almost grabbed a second on 57 minutes, after being played through by Albin Ekdal. The Napoli goalkeeper was equal to his effort however, diving low to his left and parrying away.
Following that brief sucker-punch, Maggio once again combined with De Guzman when his looping cross found the Dutchman. De Guzman adjusted a perfectly cushioned header into the far post, firing Napoli back into a 3–2 lead on 62 minutes. Farias would respond almost immediately however, tapping home Ibarbo’s cross to level the game once again on 67 minutes.
In the end, with Napoli pushing for the win, Cagliari were able to hold on after bravely coming from behind to grab a very good point at the San Paolo.
