Manchester City opened their Champions League campaign with victory by beating 10-man Napoli 2–0 at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday night.
Kevin De Bruyne’s Etihad comeback stole many of the prematch headlines, as did the returns of Scott McTominay and Rasmus Højlund to Manchester, but it was Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo who grabbed the attention on the pitch with an early red card. The Italian’s last-man lunge on Erling Haaland was punished following a VAR review, placing the visitors in a perilous position after just 20 minutes.
Antonio Conte sacrificed De Bruyne as he was forced into an early tactical reshuffle, with the former City maestro receiving a warm ovation upon being replaced by left back Mathías Olivera. The hosts set about piling even more misery on the reigning Serie A champions, but were rebuffed by Napoli goalkeeper Vanja Milinković-Savić following a string of saves late in the first half.
It was a familiar tale after the restart, City camped inside Napoli’s half but greeted by an army of nine outfield players and the towering frame of Milinković-Savić in between the sticks. However, Napoli’s resistance was finally broken just before the hour mark when Haaland looped a header into the visiting goal from Phil Foden’s exquisite pass to become the quickest player to reach 50 Champions League goals.
City wasted no time in putting the result beyond doubt as Jérémy Doku, who starred in the Manchester derby at the weekend, produced a sublime solo effort to double their advantage. The fleet-footed Belgian skipped past several Napoli shirts inside the penalty area before rolling the ball into the bottom corner with aplomb.
Napoli were quick to accept defeat and City even faster to take their foot off the gas in the closing stages, with Guardiola’s men easing over the finish line to ensure a winning start to their league phase campaign.
Man City Player Ratings vs. Napoli (4-1-4-1)
Subs not used: James Trafford (GK), Marcus Bettinelli (GK), Matheus Nunes, Stephen Mfuni, Divine Mukasa.
Player of the match: Phil Foden
Napoli (4-1-4-1): Vanja Milinković-Savić; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Sam Beukema, Alessandro Buongiorno, Leonardo Spinazzola; Stanislav Lobotka; Matteo Politano, André-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Levin De Bruyne, Scott McTominay; Rasmus Højlund.
Subs: Alex Meret (GK), Mathias Ferrante (GK), Juan Jesus, Mathías OIivera, Miguel Gutiérrez, Billy Gilmour, Antonio Vergara, David Neres, Eljif Elmas, Giuseppe Ambrosino, Lorenzo Lucca, Noa Lang.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Man City Player Ratings vs. Napoli: Cityzens Ease to 2–0 Victory Over 10-Man Visitors.