Italian Super Cup: Napoli vs AC Milan! Focus on defense before attacking? Napoli shows strong determination

Today, our first topic isthe Italian Super Cup: Napoli vs AC Milan!

In their previous match, Milan won 2-1, with Napoli’s defense being ridiculously weak and astonishingly bad.

But now,despite Napoli still having many injured players, Milan may not have the same comfortable experience as before.

Last time, Milan fielded their entire main lineup, strong and formidable.

Meanwhile, Napoli’s defense suffered serious injuries, with as many as four key defenders sidelined simultaneously.

What impact does this kind of injury have?

Looking at the drastic changes at that time already explains everything; at the start of the season, Napoli could not suddenly produce a reliable defensive lineup out of nowhere.

In the match, Napoli’s defense was practically nonexistent.

For example, they conceded the first goal within 2 minutes,and you simply couldn’t see Napoli’s left-back, leaving a huge gap for Milan.

Why was there no left-back?

Because Spinazzola got injured suddenly,forcing the young newcomer Gutiérrez to make his debutwithout knowing his position or role at all.

Conceding the second goal was even more laughable,as Milan’s center-back Pavlović managed to break into the box and deliver a good pass despite being marked by 3 to 4 defenders.

Pavlović, a 1.94m tall strong center-back, dribbled Napoli’s defense like Messi, showing how fragile Napoli’s defense was.

Last season, Napoli was very strong, winning Serie A, but their attack wasn’t outstanding; they mainly relied on the best defense in the league.

Yet their strongest aspect turned into a joke.This kind of play is obviously impossible to continue.

Today, Napoli has many injuries in midfield and attack; players like Lukaku, De Bruyne, and Anguissa are basically unavailable.

However, their defenders are much healthier, with only the backup left-back Oliveira expected to be absent.

You see, both Conte and captain Di Lorenzo have statedthat this match will be decided by defense — first secure the defense, then think about attacking.

Therefore, Milan is definitely going to face a tough challenge today.

On the other hand, Milan might be missing their biggest offensive threat: Leão.

He missed the team’s final group training and could only train alone, making it difficult even to come off the bench; it’s expected that Nkunku will replace him,but Nkunku has played 11 Serie A matches this season without scoring a goal.Naturally, his ability doesn’t match a star player like Leão.

Although Allegri is widely regarded as Italy’s king of cup matches, his success mainly comes from solid defense — first defend well, then attack.

Losing a key weapon like Leão must be quite frustrating for him.

So, even though Napoli has recently suffered two consecutive defeats and is in poor form, can this match satisfy the fans? What do you think? We look forward to them securing at least a draw or even a win.

Alright, for other matches today, I will still share my written insights in the evening. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me. “Watch the game and understand it” — see you there!

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