Venezia gave their survival fight a sharper outline at the Penzo, beating Napoli 1-0 through Adams’ second-half finish and a defining performance from Filip Stankovic. Napoli, coming straight from defeat to Villarreal, produced enough pressure to change the afternoon but could not find the final touch, with Kevin De Bruyne’s saved penalty the decisive moment in a further league setback for Massimiliano Allegri’s side.
Adams strikes as Venezia hold their ground
The first half offered little space or fluency. Napoli had opportunities through Rrahmani, whose effort after a corner was blocked by Haps, while Giovane fired narrowly wide from range. Venezia had threatened early when Adams tested Alex Meret after Badiashile failed to clear, and the home side remained in the contest despite a brief interruption caused by smoke flares near both penalty areas.
Napoli began the second period with greater urgency. Beukema delivered a dangerous ball that Giovane just failed to reach, but Venezia went ahead in the 49th minute. Rrahmani did not deal cleanly with a ball sent towards Adams, who turned inside, opened up a right-footed shot and beat Meret with the help of a deflection from the Napoli defender.
Allegri responded with a triple substitution five minutes later, sending on Alisson Santos, De Bruyne and Hojlund. Napoli then created a sustained spell of pressure, but Venezia’s back line and goalkeeper kept the lead intact.
- In the 59th minute, Hojlund looked set to score from Alisson Santos’ delivery before Juan Jesus made a last-ditch block, later saying he was not even sure how he had made contact and thought it may have been with his knee.
- Moreno brought down Hojlund in the area on 66 minutes, giving Napoli the chance to equalise from the spot.
- De Bruyne placed a right-footed penalty towards the corner, but Stankovic read it correctly and held the ball.
- Venezia could have extended their advantage when Adams chose to shoot rather than release a teammate on a counterattack, before Albion Rrahmani was denied by Meret after another break.
- Stankovic then repelled efforts from Hojlund, Lobotka, McTominay, Di Lorenzo, Politano and Alisson Santos, while Alisson Santos also saw a goalbound shot stopped on the line by McTominay.
Alisson Santos appeared to feel a problem after his late attempt, and Napoli had to finish the match with that concern as they chased an equaliser through four minutes of added time. Venezia saw the result through, with Kike Perez booked after Basic had received the game’s first yellow card for dissent.
Stankovic leads a first Nicola victory
The result was Venezia’s first Serie A win since Davide Nicola took charge. It also continued a remarkable record for the coach: in six occasions taking over a side during a season, he has never lost his first match, recording four wins and two draws.
Nicola was keen to place the afternoon within a longer process rather than accept familiar labels around his work in relegation battles. He said he was tired of the “survival specialist” narrative, insisting that the players had made a major contribution despite having had only two days with him.
He felt Venezia had found enough balance to compete, with the side able to keep appropriate distances between the lines against a talented opponent. The coach also highlighted the defensive work at set pieces, particularly the shift from man-marking to zonal responsibilities. He accepted, however, that Napoli’s chances meant Venezia might not necessarily have won the match, and said the group must stay committed to its work.
On Adams, Nicola avoided making the result about one player. He noted that the forward had made a few small mistakes but praised his commitment, his importance to the team and his considerable room for improvement.
Stankovic said he had simply tried to help when he could see teammates tiring. Reflecting on the penalty, he explained that he knew De Bruyne would aim for the corner and was pleased to be ready. He credited Nicola with bringing clear instructions and energy.
Juan Jesus, facing a club where he won two league titles, described Napoli as opponents only for one day. Before the game, he had said Venezia’s difficult run could be changed through faith in the squad’s quality. Afterwards, he said the team had always shown ability even during defeats and had earned the points against a very strong side. He added that Nicola had already made an important impression on the players, while acknowledging the disappointment surrounding the departure of former coach Giovanni Stroppa.
Napoli left to address a familiar problem
For Napoli, the defeat left the team tenth in the table while the remaining fixtures were still to be played. It was another blow after their Champions League loss and followed what Meret described as an excellent performance against Frosinone.
The Napoli goalkeeper argued that his side had not played badly, saying the team had conceded little before being punished for a lapse early in the second half. He stressed that Napoli created plenty but failed to turn possession and chances into goals.
- Meret called for the group to remain united and continue believing in the work being done.
- He said the players must make sacrifices for each other to emerge from the difficult spell.
- While acknowledging the defensive mistake around Adams’ goal, he did not believe Napoli had been poor without the ball overall.
- He said the squad must analyse the incident, protect its balance and follow Allegri’s instructions.
Allegri urged calm after the final whistle, saying there was no sense in worrying at this stage and that the team needed clearer heads. He also confirmed that Alisson Santos’ late physical issue was a recurrence of an earlier problem.
Napoli had left De Bruyne and Hojlund among the substitutes at kick-off, lining up with Meret; Beukema, Rrahmani and Badiashile; Di Lorenzo, Gilmour, Lobotka and Spinazzola; Giovane and McTominay behind Lucca. Venezia started with Stankovic; Halhal, Juan Jesus and Moreno; Hainaut, Kike Perez, Basic, Sohm and Haps; Yeboah and Adams.
Before the match, Venezia sporting director Filippo Antonelli had said the club wanted greater solidity and balance from Nicola, qualities it believed were necessary to remain in Serie A. He said the decision to dismiss Stroppa had been considered carefully: the club had seen encouraging signs against Lazio, but expected further progress after the international break and instead judged that performances had regressed. Napoli sporting director Giovanni Manna, meanwhile, had dismissed discussion of a supposed dispute between Allegri and De Bruyne as exaggerated bar-room talk.
