Napoli and Como began their Serie A meeting at 18.30 on Sunday with the score still 0-0, and Como were the first to have the ball. The opening minutes at the Maradona belonged to the visitors in possession, even if Napoli were the side trying to strike first.
That is why the match was being searched live: readers wanted the first scoreline, the first touch of authority and the shape of the two teams before the game settled. Napoli lined up with Meret, Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, R. Marin, Olivera, Anguissa, Lobotka, McTominay, Politano, Hojlund and Lang in a 4-3-3, while Como started with Butez, Couto, Ramon, Chalobah, Valle, Da Cunha, Milla, Diao, Nico Paz, Baturina and Douvikas in a 4-2-3-1. Luca Pairetto was the referee.
The first real Napoli move came down the left, with Lang and Olivera involved, but Chalobah stepped in to stop Hojlund. Moments later, Butez came out to deal with a ball Meret had launched toward Hojlund, and then McTominay was caught out by a risky touch near the edge of the area, opening the door for Como to come forward with Baturina and Douvikas. Diao’s cut-back from the right found no teammate. It was a small but telling start: Napoli had the home crowd and the memory of beating Genoa behind them, yet Como were handling the ball with the calm side of a team that had already drawn with Udinese.
Allegri put that control into words when he said he had seen Lang and Olivera well and that Como “palleggia benissimo.” For Napoli, that was the first problem of the night. The hosts had the names and the ground, but Como had the opening rhythm, and until Napoli turned that early pressure into a clean chance, the game stayed exactly where the scoreboard said it was: level.
