November 25, (THEWILL) – Walter Mazzarri, marked his return to the Napoli hot seat after over 10 years away with a dramatic 2-1 away victory over top-four rivals Atalanta on Saturday.
Despite having an Amir Rrahmani goal controversially ruled out by VAR and losing two defenders to concerning knee injuries in the first half, Mazzarri coaxed a gutsy performance from his depleted side.
The breakthrough came on the hour mark courtesy of a textbook header from Georgian revelation Kvicha Kvaratskhelia. However, Atalanta quickly equalised through an Ademola Lookman header to set up a tense finale.
The pivotal moment arrived in the 73rd minute when substitute Victor Osimhen, making his comeback from a six-week thigh injury layoff, intercepted a poor goalkeeper clearance. Rather than shooting himself, the Nigerian selflessly squared for fellow sub-Eljif Elmas to smash home a late winner that gave Napoli maximum points.
It was a goal encapsulating the selflessness that was the hallmark of Mazzarri’s previous successful stint at the Estadio Diego Armando Maradona from 2009 to 2013. After a difficult season to date, the Partenopei boss will now be hoping this hard-fought victory kickstarts a resurgence.
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.
