October 02, (THEWILL) — Rasmus Hojlund netted twice to deliver Napoli their opening victory in the UEFA Champions League group stage, defeating Sporting CP 2-1 in a hard-fought encounter. The Danish forward proved decisive for the Serie A club, converting opportunities created by Kevin De Bruyne to claim all three points.
Napoli controlled possession during the first half, with Leonardo Spinazzola and Matteo Politano combining effectively in attack. De Bruyne provided the breakthrough in the 36th minute, threading a pass for Hojlund to finish confidently from distance. Politano nearly doubled the advantage before half-time, but Rui Silva denied the Italian international.
Sporting responded strongly after the interval and earned a penalty when Politano brought down Maximiliano Araujo inside the box. Luis Suarez converted from the spot, sending Vanja Milinkovic-Savic in the wrong direction to restore parity.
The winning goal arrived through the same partnership that opened the scoring. De Bruyne delivered a header into the danger zone, where Hojlund connected bravely to power home the decisive strike. The former Manchester United attacker showed composure under pressure to complete his brace.
The result marks a crucial breakthrough for Napoli in their European campaign. Hojlund’s clinical finishing and De Bruyne’s creativity proved instrumental in earning the victory against the Portuguese opposition.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
