Cagliari held out for 95 minutes at reigning champions Napoli, but it wasn't enough: in the final five minutes of injury time, Anguissa made it 1-0. The Rossoblu had held out well throughout the match.
Cagliari started with a 3-5-1-1 formation, with Palestra and Obert wide, while Folorunsho supported Esposito. Five minutes later, Zappa was immediately booked for running and hitting McTominay . There were no significant openings, and the first chances were in the 18th minute, with Spinazzola's cross from the left, which Lucca attempted to acrobatically fire into the far post without touching.
Napoli dominated possession, with Cagliari remaining mostly in their own half for the first half hour. In the 30th minute, Prati was robbed of the ball by McTominay, but the Scotsman's left-footed shot was blocked by Mina. The Rossoblu made their first appearance in the 36th minute: Deiola played the ball to Esposito, who failed to direct it towards Meret's goal in the six-yard box . A minute later, Obert broke down the flank, entered the box, and was met with a cross from the home defense.
Esposito tried his luck from midfield in the 38th minute, seeing Meret out of range: his shot went wide. A minute later, De Bruyne received the ball from Spinazzola and fired it over with his right foot. Then, in the 41st minute, a good cross from debutant Palestra found Prati in the box, whose header went over. Before halftime, Caprile blocked a low shot from Lucca, but the Cagliari goalkeeper made a decisive save in the 45th minute, denying McTominay from a right-footed shot at the near post after the Scotsman had escaped three opponents . Halftime followed after one minute of added time.
The second half was played without substitutions, with McTominay's right-footed shot from twenty meters wide in the 48th minute. The first substitution came in the 58th minute: the booked Zappa was replaced by Luvumbo. As soon as he came on, the Angolan had to challenge Spinazzola, who beat him with a series of feints, and shot at the near post, which Caprile then sent out for a corner . Then Luvumbo made his mark in attack, cutting inside from the right and firing over with his left foot.
In the 66th minute, Cagliari made a double substitution: Gaetano and Borrelli (who immediately booked Juan Jesus) came in for Prati and Esposito. Politano's recovery on the right flank from Folorunsho created a chance for Napoli, but the winger's left-footed shot went just over. The Rossoblu had a great chance in the 74th minute, with a powerful cross from the right by Luvumbo to the far post, but Folorunsho dived over .
A mistake on a short throw, resulting in a misunderstanding between Mina and Deiola, allowed Lang to shoot as soon as he came on: a deflection was crucial to prevent the ball from hitting the target (81'). In the 90th minute, Politano took a free kick, but Anguissa headed it over. In the third of five minutes of injury time, Napoli had a huge opportunity. McTominay was served in the box but controlled it weakly with his right foot, which Caprile blocked on the ground. The Scotsman also attempted an overhead kick from Politano's cross but it didn't find the target, but in the 95th minute, Anguissa was fed by Buongiorno in the center of the area and – all alone – put the ball in the net to make it 1-0, securing Napoli's victory .
