Napoli 3-1 Chelsea - Match Report

By Jack Bond / August 12, 2013

Andre Villas-Boas' woes continued with a 3-1 Champions League defeat at the hands of Napoli in what was a helter-skelter match littered with defensive errors and settled by the clinical finishing of the Italian side's two star forwards. An Ezequiel Lavezzi brace and Edinson Cavani goal gave the home side the victory after Juan Mata had handed Chelsea the lead in a match that was extraordinarily open for this stage of the competition. Both sides looked extremely vulnerable in defence throughout the night and there were plenty of chances at both ends in a wonderful spectacle for the neutral. Chelsea had walked out into the imposing atmosphere of the Stadio San Paolo with expereienced players, Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard, Fernando Torres and Michael Essien all on the bench. It was a bold move from AVB and based on the performance perhaps not a wise one in such an hostile environment. Nevertheless it was probably the absence of captain, John Terry, through injury that was the biggest blow as Gary Cahill and David Luiz struggled to deal with Napoli's attacking talent. The Chelsea skipper picked up an injury in training this week and could be out for up to six weeks. Napoli started the match on the front foot with Lavezzi close to getting on the end of a wonderful ball over the top by Paolo Cannavaro although Petr Cech was able to get there first and parry it away to safety. Then after ten minutes Cavani sprang the offside trap after Cahill played him on but the Uruguayan saw his shot saved expertly by the foot of the Chelsea 'keeper. Cole was called into action much sooner than expected when Jose Bosingwa who had started at left-back pulled up with what looked like a hamstring injury. Chelsea looked sloppy in possession in the opening quarter of an hour and when Ramires lost the ball in midfield Cavani was played through again, only to be flagged offside, although his touch around Cech was heavy. Chelsea started to come into the game, though, and looked to expose the lack of pace within Napoli's defence. Florent Malouda managed to win the ball ahead of Morgan De Sanctis who had come charging out of his goal but the Frenchman was unable to make the most of the opportunity and the attack came to nothing. But Napoli were soon on the attack again and a lapse in concentration from Cole let Christian Maggio through at pace but Cech again did well to keep the close range shot out. Then completely against the run of play, Napoli gifted Chelsea the lead when Cannavaro's attempted clearance bobbled up over his head and fell straight into the path of Mata. The Spaniard made no mistake with the finish, slotting it cooly past De Sanctis from eight yards out. Then after a brief spell off the field following a knock, Mata was back in the action again firing a shot into the side netting and it was his corner that found the head of Luiz but the Brazilian couldn't keep his header down. Following the goal Chelsea enjoyed a lot of possession but it was Napoli who were next to find the back of the net. Raul Meireles failed to close down Lavezzi on the edge of the area and the Argentine bent his shot wide of Cech's outstretched hand and into the corner of the goal. Chelsea had a good chance to regain the lead shortly afterwards however when Ramires wormed his way into the Napoli box but his shot was sent wildly over the bar. But the away side were dealt a cruel blow just before half time when a deep ball to the back post found Cavani who, having lost Branislav Ivanovic, was able to turn the ball into the goal with his shoulder to give the Italian's the lead. There were faint appeals for handball from some of the Chelsea players but replays confirmed it was a brilliant piece of improvisation from Napoli's top scorer. Half Time The second half continued in the same vain as the first with both sides finding plenty of space within the opposition's halves. Chelsea were the first to carve an opening although Malouda's half volley from 20 yards was easily saved by De Sanctis. Mata was the next to try his luck but his tame shot from 30 yards was easily gathered by De Sanctis. Almost immediately afterwards Lavezzi was played through by Cavani on the counter attack and the Argentine should have done much better with his shot which he dragged wide of the post. Chelsea then began to put some passes together in what soon turned into their most prolonged spell of good play. Mata, who seemed to be relishing the time on the ball afforded to him by the Napoli defenders, tested De Sanctis with a decent volleyed drive but his contact with the ball wasn't perfect and the goalkeeper saved comfortably. Didier Drogba was almost in after he ghosted between two defenders and Malouda's lofted ball found him but a last ditch tackle was enough to prevent the Ivorian grabbing an equaliser. Then, after Chelsea's best spell of the game, Napoli broke and Lavezzi was on hand to give the hosts a 3-1 lead. A hopeful ball down the right channel wasn't dealt with by Luiz who allowed Cavani to break forward and as Cech came to meet him the Uruguayan squared to Lavezzi to finish into an open goal. There were few clear cut chances following Napoli's third goal, and Lavezzi's substitution suggested Walter Mazzarri was happy to settle for the 3-1 scoreline. However, despite Lavezzi's removal, Napoli remained a threat on the break and Maggio could easily have added a fourth for the home side. Cavani and Marek Hamsik combined brilliantly in the Chelsea box and when Hamsik squared to Maggio the right-back looked certain to score but Cole was on hand to clear the ball off the line. Such open games are often difficult to analyse for managers and Villas-Boas will have a lot to think about before the second leg. Nevertheless, Mata's away goal will give them hope as will Napoli's defensive frailties but AVB's men must improve their own issues in that department, in the absence of Terry, if they are to have any chance of progressing in this competition. Referee: Carlos Velasco Carballo Napoli (4-4-2): De Sanctis, Aronica, Campagnaro, Zuniga, Cannavaro, Maggio, Hamsik (Pandev, 82), Gargano, Inler, Cavani, Lavezzi (Dzemaili, 74). Chelsea (4-5-1): Cech, Ivanovic, Luiz, Cahill, Bosingwa (Cole, 12), Ramires, Meireles (Essien, 70), Malouda (Lampard, 70), Sturridge, Mata, Drogba.