Formicola double silences Naples
Marcelo Formicola struck twice in the opening twenty minutes at the Fuorigrotta as Chelsea returned from Naples with a 2-0 win and a firm grip on their Champions League group.
Two goals in sixteen first-half minutes from Marcelo Formicola settled a contest that Chelsea never looked like losing, even if Napoli hogged the ball for long stretches. The 41% possession was almost an afterthought; what mattered was the 24 shots, the 13 corners, and the Argentine's ruthless early burst.
Formicola opened the scoring after just four minutes, and by the twentieth he had his second. Both goals came from the kind of quick, incisive moves that have become Chelsea's calling card under Calin Dimario. Napoli, for all their tidy passing, managed just two shots all evening, and only one of those troubled Elias Jimenez.
Our preview had wondered whether Chelsea's tired minds might be their undoing against a Napoli side carrying their own injury list. In the end, the visitors' focus was absolute. Lionel Messi, Júnior and Jassem Abdulla caused problems all night, and Francisco Pardal was immense in midfield, winning four tackles and four interceptions. Napoli's goalkeeper Dieudonné Defevere made nine saves to keep the scoreline respectable, but the hosts never threatened to turn possession into chances.
The win maintains Chelsea's perfect start in this season's Champions League, and with Watford next up in the league on Boxing Day, the machine rolls on. For Napoli, the defeat leaves them looking over their shoulders ahead of Sunday's visit of Fiorentina.