Napoli booked their place in the final of the Supercoppa Italiana with a commanding 2-0 victory over AC Milan in Riyadh. The Italian champions, under Antonio Conte, were superior throughout the semifinal clash, with goals from David Neres and Rasmus Hojlund sealing a deserved win. The match was effectively decided by a combination of Hojlund’s dominant performance and a costly error from Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan.
The opening goal arrived in the 38th minute. Hojlund, a constant menace, held off defender De Winter on the edge of the area, turned, and delivered a low cross. Maignan, inexplicably, fumbled his dive and palmed the ball directly into the path of David Neres, who tapped into an empty net. Maignan partially redeemed himself with a superb save to deny Hojlund a second just before halftime, but the damage was done. The second half followed a similar pattern, with Hojlund again tormenting De Winter. In the 59th minute, he latched onto a through ball, shrugged off the Belgian defender with ease, and fired a left-footed shot past Maignan to double the lead and effectively kill the contest.
The story of the match was the stark contrast in attacking efficiency. Hojlund was named man of the match for his physical dominance and clinical finish, while his opposite number, Christopher Nkunku, had a night to forget for Milan. Manager Massimiliano Allegri had expressed “full confidence” in Nkunku pre-match, but the forward squandered Milan’s best chance on a counter-attack in the first half and was largely anonymous. Milan’s tactical setup, with Ardon Jashari starting in midfield and Pervis Estupinan at left wing-back, failed to contain Napoli’s intensity. The Rossoneri, who wore special kits with player names in Arabic script, created little of note, with a late header from Youssouf Fofana comfortably saved by Vanja Milinkovic-Savic representing their only real threat.
Pre-match team news highlighted some of Milan’s selection headaches. Allegri confirmed Estupinan started because Davide Bartesaghi had a flexor issue, while he opted for the “fresh legs” of Jashari. Napoli, meanwhile, were without the injured Romelu Lukaku, but Hojlund’s performance rendered his absence irrelevant. The victory sets up a final for Napoli against the winner of the second semifinal between Inter Milan and Bologna. For Milan, the defeat is a setback in a season where their record against top sides has been a strength, and questions will be asked about their attacking options, especially with Rafael Leao not even on the bench and Santiago Gimenez still recovering from injury.
The format of this Supercoppa Italiana is a Final Four, hosted in Saudi Arabia, with drawn matches going straight to penalties after 90 minutes. Napoli navigated that potential pitfall with a professional performance, showing no ill effects from recent league defeats. For Conte’s men, this was a statement win that propels them into a final and reasserts their credentials as Italy’s top team. For Allegri’s Milan, it’s a disappointing early exit that leaves them to focus solely on the Serie A title race, their Middle Eastern excursion ending sooner than hoped.