[Coppa Italia] Lazio - Napoli = 3 - 1

Lazio booked their place in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals after defeating Napoli 3-1 in the Round of 16 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. Tijjani Noslin was the hero of the match, netting a hat-trick to lead the Biancoceleste to victory.  

Napoli’s loss marked their fourth consecutive failure to progress past the Round of 16 in the competition. With this defeat, their hopes of lifting the Coppa Italia trophy this season were dashed. Now, their sole focus shifts to the Italian Serie A, as the team is absent from European competitions after finishing a disappointing 10th in the league last season.  

Both teams made significant changes to their starting lineups for the match. Napoli coach Antonio Conte opted to rest key players such as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Romelu Lukaku, and Scott McTominay. While Lukaku and McTominay entered in the second half, their impact was limited.  

Lazio coach Marco Baroni also made several changes to his lineup, giving a break to key players such as Ivan Provedel, Alessio Romagnoli, and Matteo Guendouzi. Despite the rotations, Lazio put on an impressive display and controlled the game.

Lazio had an early opportunity to take the lead when they were awarded a penalty in the 20th minute after Pedro was fouled by Napoli goalkeeper Elia Caprile. However, Mattia Zaccagni’s spot-kick was saved, keeping the scoreline level.  

The deadlock was broken in the 32nd minute when Noslin converted a pass from Samuel Gigot. Napoli responded quickly, equalizing just four minutes later through Giovanni Simeone, who capitalized on a rebound following a save from Christos Mandas.  

Lazio regained the lead in the 41st minute when Noslin scored his second goal. Simeone nearly equalized again just before halftime, but his effort was denied by Mandas, preserving Lazio’s 2-1 advantage going into the break.  

The second half saw Lazio press aggressively, and Noslin completed his hat-trick in the 50th minute with a deflected header off Zaccagni’s cross. Despite some late attempts from Napoli, no further goals were scored, and the match ended 3-1 in favor of Lazio.  

The two teams are set to meet again in Serie A, while Lazio looks ahead to their next Coppa Italia challenge in February 2025. In the quarter-finals, Lazio will take on either Inter Milan or Udinese, with their opponent to be determined on December 20.

Lazio (4-2-3-1): Mandas 6.5; Lazzari 6, Gigot 7.5, Patric 6, Hysaj 7; Rovella 7, Dele-Bashiru 6.5 (73' Castrovilli 6); Tchaouna 6, Pedro 7 (60' Isaksen 6), Zaccagni 6.5 (60' Guendouzi 6); Noslin 9 (90' Marusic n/a)

Bench: Provedel, Furlanetto, Milani, Romagnoli, Gila, Basic, Akpa-Akpro, Castellanos

Coach: Baroni 7.5

Goalscorers: 32' Noslin (L), 36' Simeone (N), 41' Noslin (L), 50' Noslin (L)

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