Napoli and Juventus flop: black Saturday for Mazzarri-Allegri with Genoa-Verona

Verona-Juventus 2-2, Allegri no longer wins. Vlahovic and Rabiot are not enough

Juventus drew 2-2 at Verona in the match scheduled for today 17 February for the 25th matchday of the 2023-2024 Serie A. The team coached by Allegri, without a win in 4 games, does not emerge from the crisis and after having said goodbye to the scudetto, they risk losing second place too. Juve has 54 points, -9 behind leaders Inter who have a game to recover, and can be overtaken by Milan who are currently third on 52. Verona, third from last with 20 points, misses the opportunity to get out of the relegation zone.

Juve has the first chance in the 7th minute when Kostic serves Yldiz, a shot that is safely blocked by Dawidowicz. Verona responds and draws the joker that gives them the lead in the 11th minute. Folorunsho hits a volley, his left foot is perfect: 1-0. The two teams immediately spread out, there is plenty of space and there are many errors in a match of mediocre quality. Juve, which relies as often happens on personal initiatives, tries to strike a blow with Cambiaso and Rabiot. In the 27th minute, the episode that favored the Juventus draw. Handball from Tchatchoua, penalty. Vlahovic converts from the spot: 1-1. Allegri's Juventus began the second half in an unwatchable manner, with a script proposed several times. Verona only needed a couple of passes to find the goal for their new lead. Suslov triggers Folorunsho, ball to Noslin and touch to beat Szczesny: 2-1 in the 52nd minute. The Bianconeri have the merit of reacting immediately and Rabiot, served by Locatelli, hits Montipò with his left foot in the 55th minute: 2-2. Allegri makes repeated substitutions, Juve changes face but the final product remains the same: absent organization, cumbersome play and up front you have to wait until the 69th minute to see Vlahovic's imprecise header. In the 83rd minute Chiesa traces himself with a shot off target. In the 92nd minute Chiesa tries again after the combination with Alcaraz, Montipò saves with an excellent save: it ends 2-2.

Serie A, Napoli-Genoa 1-1, Ngonge saves the Azzurri in the 90th minute

Walter Mazzarri's Napoli were saved only in the 90th minute at Maradona against Genoa. It ends 1-1, amidst boos from the home crowd, with the two goals coming in the second half from Frendrup for the rossoblu and from Ngonge for the Neapolitans. Great game for Gilardino's team who could have taken the three points, and a missed opportunity for Napoli to get closer to the top of the table. A second half of competitive anger and forcing wasn't enough for the Azzurri to turn the match around. Napoli thus rises to 36 points in ninth place with Torino, while in Genoa they reach 30 points.

Mazzarri, without Osimhen, returned from the Africa Cup of Nations but not yet ready. he brings Meret back in goal with Ostigard replacing the suspended Juan Jesus, while Mazzocchi is preferred to Mario Rui and Olivera on the left lane. The coach also decides on Traoré's debut in midfield, with Zielinski on the bench. Simeone still starts at forward. While there is only one absence for Gilardino, who has to give up Matturro. The news is Malinovskyi on the bench with Messias on the pitch and with Frendrup returning to play midfielder. The Retegui-Gudmundsson attacking pair has been confirmed.

The challenge was immediately intense with Kvara's first solo in the 3rd minute as he jumped Sabelli and kicked hard but centrally. Easy save for Martinez. The rossoblù react with Retegui's header following an assist from Martin, blocked in two stages by Meret. Napoli came close to taking the lead in the 15th minute, when Anguissa counter-punched a shot from the edge of the area, but Martinez was not surprised. In the 27th minute Meret again decides against Retegui. In the 37th minute Traoré tries to receive it on the edge of the area, comes back on the right and shoots, but hits it badly and the ball goes high.

At the start of the second half Genoa took the lead. In the 47th minute Messias serves Retegui in the area with the center forward controlling but is stopped by Natan's intervention with the ball ending up in Frendup's area, who beats Meret with his left foot for the 0-1. Napoli ups the pace and in the 56th minute Traoré receives Simeone's tackle and shoots but Martinez blocks. Genoa can no longer get out. In the 74th minute, Kvaratskhelia returned a corner and a header from Anguissa who narrowly missed the target. The Georgian protagonist again in the 87th minute, looks for the low corner at the far post but Martinez stretches out and deflects it for a corner. The pressure from Mazzarri's team materializes in the 90th minute: Olivera crosses to the far post for Di Lorenzo, who passes it to the new substitute Ngonge who shoots with his left foot and finds the corner for the final 1-1.

Mazzarri, 'Osimhen was at his lowest level, there was no point in risking it'

“Osimhen? According to him and the doctors he was at his lowest with several contractures. I think that after the Africa Cup of Nations there was no point in risking him to play 20 minutes. I think any coach would have made the same choice. Let's hope to have him recovered for the match against Barcelona.” Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri said this to Dazn, speaking about Victor Osimhen, after the 1-1 draw at home with Genoa. “Is it just a hope to have him for the Champions League? When I arrived he was injured, then there was the Africa Cup of Nations, we hope to have him available for Wednesday.”

Mazzarri, 'player confidence? They wouldn't play like this if they didn't follow me'

“The players do what they can. We all do what we can and it's going badly for us. I feel sorry for this exceptional public who supported us today too and who deserves more. We have to correct those few mistakes we make. We are unable to put fruit of all the work we do. It's not easy to give explanations for anyone.” Thus the Napoli coach, Walter Mazzarri, to Dazn at the end of the match against Genoa which ended 1-1 at Maradona. “If you look at the details of the game in the first half we had two or three scoring opportunities and they didn't go. If Genoa had gone behind there would have been nothing to say and we would have seen another Napoli. They tell me about possession ball, but I don't even want to mention it. It's a period like that. We have to work and try to correct the little flaw that made us concede goals. Do I feel the confidence? The players demonstrate it every Sunday. If it had been differently they would have done another match. You can ask them, I have no problems”, added Mazzarri who on the match against Barcelona in the Champions League added: “Barcelona certainly won't come here to set up barricades and we certainly shouldn't have a assault on the fort. We will fight it out and try to do what we have sometimes managed to do.”