SASSUOLO, Italy: Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimhen scored first-half goals as Napoli opened an 18-point lead in Serie A with a 2-0 win at Sassuolo on Friday.
Giovanni Simeone, the son of Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone, thought he’d made it 3-0 in injury time but his goal was ruled out for offside.
Simeone had come on late for Osimhen as Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti made his five substitutions presumably with Tuesday’s visit to Eintracht Frankfurt in mind.
His team had shown no sign of conserving any energy for the Champions League clash.
Kvaratskhelia got the visitors off to a great start in the 12th minute when he won the ball in the center circle and tore off toward goal, skipping over a challenge and then finding the space to shoot through a defender’s legs and inside the left post.
Armand Laurienté struck the post in response for Sassuolo before Osimhen took over. The Nigeria striker scored a hat trick in Napoli’s 4-0 win over Sassuolo in October and seemed keen to repeat the feat.
Osimhen hit the left post in the 27th, then scored in the 33rd, when he squeezed the ball inside the near post from a narrow angle despite facing two defenders.
Osimhen almost made it 3-0 minutes later when he headed just wide from Kvaratskhelia’s cross.
Laurienté replied with a fine finish for Sassuolo, but the goal was ruled out after a VAR check as teammate Gregoire Defrel was offside when he impeded Napoli defender Mathias Olivera.
Osimhen could have scored again after the break. He had an uncharacteristically poor touch with only goalkeeper Andrea Consigli to beat, then Consigli pulled off a good save as the visitors kept pushing forward.
Osimhen had to be content with one goal. He now has nine in his last seven league matches and 18 in Serie A this season.
Second-place Inter Milan hosts Udinese on Saturday.
Napoli increases lead at top of Serie A to 18 points
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Napoli increases lead at top of Serie A to 18 points
- Second-place Inter Milan hosts Udinese on Saturday
Messi bags 899th goal as Miami down DC United
- The Argentine superstar’s 80th goal for Miami takes his career tally to 899, leaving him just one away from reaching the 900-goal milestone
WASHINGTON, United States: Lionel Messi moved to the brink of another goalscoring milestone as Inter Miami bagged their second win of the Major League Soccer season with a 2-1 victory over DC United on Saturday.
Messi, who scored twice in Miami’s Florida derby win over Orlando last week, bagged his third goal of the season with a deft chipped finish in the 27th minute at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
The Argentine superstar’s 80th goal for Miami takes his career tally to 899, leaving him just one away from reaching the 900-goal milestone.
The eight-time Ballon D’Or winner, who turns 39 in June, scored 672 goals for Barcelona earlier in his career and 32 at Paris Saint-Germain, with a further 115 international goals for Argentina.
Saturday’s win moved the reigning MLS champions up the Eastern Conference standings into third place with six points from three games.
Miami, who on Thursday were guests of President Donald Trump at a White House reception, took the lead in the 17th minute with a superb curling shot from the edge of the area by Messi’s Argentina team-mate Rodrigo De Paul.
Messi then doubled Miami’s lead 10 minutes later, latching on to a sublime through ball from Mateo Silvetti and dinking a first-time finish over the advancing DC United goalkeeper Sean Johnson.
United rallied after half-time, and were given hope when Israeli forward Tai Baribo pulled a goal back in the 75th minute.
Miami though were able to hold off United in the closing stages to seal victory.
