November 05, (THEWILL) – Napoli, who were dealing with several absences especially the calf contraction to Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen, conceded an early goal in their Thursday UEFA Europa League tie, but still managed to earn a large victory over Legia Warsaw thanks to a superb second half.
After a swift movement caught Napoli off guard, the home side broke the deadlock after only ten minutes. Flip Mladenovic snuck down the left wing and set up an unmarked Mahir Emreli for a simple goal.
Piotr Zielinski hit the crossbar with a powerful strike in the 17th minute as the Partenopei replied quickly. Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa wriggled free on a corner kick two minutes later, but he failed to finish.
Elijf Elmas came close to slotting it home a few minutes later, but Cezary Miszta grabbed it out of the bottom corner.
Early in the second half, Zielinski scored by drawing and converting a penalty kick. With 15 minutes remaining, Napoli took the lead in the same manner, as Josue collided with Matteo Politano in the box while attempting an acrobatic move.
This time, Dries Mertens came up to the plate and converted with a Panenka, making his return to the stat sheet after months away.
Napoli pushed more and were rewarded when they pulled further away from Warsaw. Andrea Petagna wiggled past defenders in the 79th minute to set up a square ball tap-in for Hirving Lozano who needed no convincing to find the net.
After a pair of incredibly precise touches from close range, Adam Ounas completed the scoring in stoppage time.
Regardless of what happens in tonight’s encounter between Leicester City and Spartak Moscow, the Azzurris have taken control of the group.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
