Napoli 1-1 Inter | Partenopei seal Champions League spot for next season

Date: 15th May 2011 at 11:22pm
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Napoli secured automatic Champions League qualification for next season with a draw at the San Paolo against Inter on the late Sunday evening Serie A kick-off. Goals from Samuel Eto’o and Camilo Zúñiga in the first half seamed a satisfactory result for both sides as the second half was played at a slow tempo.

LINE-UPS

Cavani was suspended for this game after receiving a red card against Lecce while Sneijder was still injured and could not make it for the game. Mazzarri’s side lined up in their usual 3-4-2-1 with Lavezzi leading the line while Leonardo opted for a 4-4-2/4-4-1-1 with overlapping full-backs. Eto’o played deeper than Milito while Kharja roamed across the pitch from his starting position at left midfield. Zanetti frequently retreated into the right back position whenever Maicon went forward

Team Styles

Inter had played midweek against Roma in the Coppa Italia and Inter players were clearly fatigued. Inter played a possession based system with Eto’o dropping deep and Kharja moving into midfield to allow Inter have plenty bodies in the midfield region. Julio Cesar’s goal kicks were short in an attempt to keep possession. Tempo was low as possession retention was the aim all through the game for Inter. Whenever Inter lost possession, Inter players dropped back and absorbed pressure as pressing was minimal. Napoli on the other hand played a pressing game and for extended periods kept Inter pinned back. The fact that Inter had already confirmed automatic Champions League qualification while Napoli had not was clearly visible.

Eto’o free

Napoli’s 3-4-2-1 theoretically should allow Napoli to man-mark both Inter forwards with a man to spare. Eto’o positioning on the pitch meant he was deeper than Milito and was usually unmarked. The brilliant chemistry between Eto’o and Milito alongside Eto’o’s positioning were key towards Inter scoring the first goal. Inter won a throwing high up the pitch on their left. Milito received the ball back-to-goal exchanging passes with Cambiasso and then releasing Eto’o whose first time shot from outside the box went past De Sanctis into the goal. A combination of these factors (Eto’o-Milito chemistry and Eto’o’s positioning) also created a good chance for the forward running Kharja which Kharja failed to put away.

Napoli react

After this goal in the 14th minute, Napoli reacted by pressing Inter more. Eto’o and Milito were always high up the pitch as Inter defended with 8 players. Initially, Napoli appeared unable to break Inter down. Napoli attacked with 5 players (all forwards and wing-backs) as Pazienza and Gargano held their position in midfield. When defending Kharja and Zanetti frequently moved in-field to help Motta and Cambiasso who had Pazienza and Gargano ahead of them and Hamsik and Zuniga behind them.

Inter defended deeper and deeper and there was more space to operate just ahead of the Inter penalty box. Lavezzi attempted to exploit this by dropping back into areas where he was unmarked. He was able to provide 2 chances with a shot Cesar struggled to hold and a slipped ball to Hamsik which Hamsik failed to score from.

Napoli overload Inter

Whenever Inter got the ball, the aim was still defensive possession (knocking the ball around the back at slow pace) and whenever the ball fell to Napoli, the pressure resumed. With confidence growing, Campagnaro began making forward runs down the right as he has done this season when Napoli play against lone striker systems. Maggio pushed on into the box and only one of Pazienza and Gargano held his position with both taking turns to make runs. Napoli were now attacking with 7 players at any one time (Inter left only 2 high up and Napoli were fairly comfortable leaving 3 players back). Pushing more players forward puts more bodies in attacking positions and finally just before half time, a Campagnaro cross into the box was fired into the net by Zuniga after a scramble in the box. The first half ended just after the goal.

2nd Half

The game might as well have ended after the first half. Napoli pressed less while Inter continued their defensive possession game. This meant the game stood still for extended periods. Leonardo made changes in form of Samuel for Ranocchia, Mariga for Cambiasso and Pazzini for Eto’o, all like-for-like changes. Pazzini continued in Eto’o’s position and was largely inconsequential. Though Inter rarely intended to attack, his inability to contribute positively outside the box was clearly evident. Mazzarri replaced his attacking players, Yebda came on for Zuniga, Sosa for Hamsik and Vitale for Dossena. For some periods, it appeared the game picked up as fresher players in attack for Napoli meant there was a little more pressure on Inter. But the game finally drifted back into a situation where either side just kept possession with Napoli having a result that allowed them to qualify for the Champions League automatically.

SUMMARY

– Inter players were tired and it showed in the slow paced, sitting back strategies they employed. They managed to score by exploiting Eto’o deep position and utilizing the brilliant chemistry between Eto’o and Milito.

– Napoli have finally secured Group Stage Champions League action for next season. A well deserved result considering the incredible spirit their players have shown in games over the campaign. Investment in the squad is necessary to reinforce key positions. Inler appears to be on the way in and considering Inler’s form this season, that’s a massive signing. Sadly, Mazzarri’s future is uncertain as it would be interesting to see his 3-4-2-1 being employed against Europe’s elite clubs next season in the Champions League

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