Politano scored after just over a minute, Lukaku doubled the lead before the 20th minute. Conceiçao brought on Leao and the team improved a little, but Gimenez missed yet another penalty of the Rossoneri season. Jovic's goal was useless

Milan and Naples were and remain very close: in the late afternoon of the Maradona, Azzurri fans connected with San Siro, where Inter had laboriously beaten Udinese with two goals. Just as many with which Napoli knocked out Milan already in the first 45 minutes of the postponement: without stress and without particular suffering. Indeed. Ready to go and Conte is already ahead. Shortly after the quarter of an hour the doubling and the game (almost) secured.

SHOCK START

There are several surprises in the teams, especially in midfield: Loftus-Cheek, forced to undergo emergency surgery for appendicitis, gives way to Fofana. Conte instead loses McTominay's muscles to a flu attack. Napoli redesigned with the 4-3-3: Neres and Anguissa in, Raspadori also out. Conceiçao had spoken with satisfaction of the last two weeks of work at Milanello, even if without fifteen internationals. He had spoken of a healthy environment and a team focused on the double objective (fourth place and then Coppa Italia), with Wednesday's derby which, however, was still a secondary thought. AC Milan who entered the field last night actually seemed to have very confused ideas: once again penalized by the approach, once again forced to make a comeback. This time they went down after just two minutes: the Rossoneri defence was surprised by Politano's insertion and Maignan hit his post. The usual Theo and Pavlovic (on the field for Thiaw) guilty. The blue wave rises: Neres is stopped by Gabbia after a speed action started on the right by Di Lorenzo (Hernandez still walking), then it is Anguissa who tries the backheel number on a corner action. Out by very little. Milan stunned and sunk in the 19th minute: Lukaku, served by Gilmour, shoots without too much coordination but slips the Rossoneri for the second time. Anguissa then flies Mike from distance, who saves from the Azzurri's trio. For Milan there is actually very little to save. Conceiçao hurriedly slipped into the locker room in the 45th minute. Conte reaches out, coordinates, guides, charges: the coaches are the photographs of the two teams.

sDEEP MILAN

— 

Upon returning from the locker room, Sergio is forced for the umpteenth time to correct his initial choices: Leao in, Bondo out. Another nine minutes of the second half and Gimenez and Chukwueze come on for Abraham and Felix. In short, in less than an hour Milan turned upside down. Without a precise team logic anymore, it is Leao who tries the number in solitary action: he discards half of Napoli's defense before finishing wide. There is still Rafa in the maneuver that leads to Gimenez's first conclusion: inaccurate. And then Pavlovic was blocked twice by Meret: in the 65th minute it was the Rossoneri's first real attempt towards the opponent's goal, with the Serbian trying an encore with ten minutes to go. The Rossoneri reaction led to Gimenez's penalty, won by Theo after Billing was fouled in the area. The Mexican from the penalty spot, however, shoots weak and central, so Meret stops him. Conte rejoices as after a goal, the Rossoneri mood sinks again. Napoli is guilty of having lowered the pace too much, but Milan manages to do much worse: they waste the chance to try to reopen the game. And Gimenez's soulless penalty is an image that tells the entire performance. Fourth penalty missed this season by the Rossoneri: why not Pulisic from the penalty spot?

desperate 

comeback

Napoli is back in control, more or less serenely, but Conte remains tense: booked for protests as a caution, he will not be on the bench in the next match against Bologna. Second bad news (but to be verified with specific tests): the injury of Lobotka, forced to change. The third warning to Napoli is Jovic's goal in the scrum, after a perfect left-footed exchange between Theo and Leao. In short, the only Milan striker to score is the third in the hierarchy. The Serbian also came close to doubling the lead in stoppage time but Milan's wake-up call, which was electric in the final minutes and with Maignan even finding himself playing as a midfielder, sounded far too late. Conte closes down and this time there is no final comeback: although, as Inter had done in the afternoon, he too is now suffering. But in the end, Milan (the Nerazzurri side) and Napoli remain close, three points apart.