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September 24, 2018

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Insigne brace powers Napoli

NAPOLI seems to be finding its feet under new coach Carlo Ancelotti and Lorenzo Insigne is reveling in his more central role.

Insigne scored twice yesterday to help Napoli win 3-1 at Torino in Serie A in a dominant performance from last season’s Italian league runner-up.

Ancelotti’s side has 12 points from five games, equal with champion Juventus, which can pull ahead again when it travels to promoted Frosinone later.

Napoli gave a dominant display in Turin following its uninspiring goalless draw at Red Star Belgrade in the UEFA Champions League midweek.

Torino gifted Insigne the first goal with less than four minutes on the clock. Emiliano Moretti attempted to clear Sebastiano Luperto’s cross but it came off Torino teammate Nicolas N’Koulou and straight into the path of Insigne, who drove it in under the crossbar.

Simone Verdi doubled Napoli’s lead in the 20th with his first goal since joining from Bologna in the offseason. The Italy forward started the move in midfield before passing to Dries Mertens on the left and racing into the area to fire in the return pass.

Torino got back into the game when Andrea Belotti converted a penalty early in the second half after Alejandro Berenguer had been brought down by Luperto. However, the hosts gifted Napoli another easy goal shortly afterward.

Armando Izzo lost possession in midfield to Marek Hamsik, who picked out Jose Callejon. The Spaniard’s shot came off the post but Inisgne was on hand to tap in the rebound.

It was Insigne’s third goal in two league matches, following a slow start to the season.

Bologna’s first goal of the season was worth the wait.

It also led to a surprise victory as Filippo Inzaghi’s team upset AS Roma 2-0.

Bologna hadn’t scored in its previous four matches but it got off the mark in stunning fashion 10 minutes before halftime.

Robin Olsen only flapped at a Sebastien De Maio cross and it came through to Federico Mattiello near the byline and he cut back before curling a finish into the far side of the net.

Lorenzo Pellegrini should have equalized on the stroke of halftime but blasted over an open goal and Bologna doubled its tally just before the hour mark. Federico Santander raced from inside his own half to collect a Diego Falcinelli pass and finish off a swift counterattack.

Roma hasn’t won since the opening day of the season and lost 0-3 at Real Madrid in the UCL on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, Lazio picked up its fourth victory in all competitions with a 4-1 win over Genoa; while Udinese won 2-0 at Chievo Verona.




 

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