Napoli’s stadium named after Diego Armando Maradona was the stage for a game so exciting, you’d feel as if the legendary Argentine himself was playing. But this Serie A classic wasn’t won by his club Napoli – it’s Atalanta who take the spoils.Five goals, scoreline swings and great goals gave us a fun night in rainy Naples. And not just one night – Atalanta’s win means that we’re in for many more thrillers in this season’s title chase.Ruslan Malinovskyi tends to score only spectacular goals and he certainly acted according to his reputation. His early well-struck effort gave the visitors from Bergamo the lead at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples. The game was truly on.Napoli’s Colombian goalkeeper David Ospina had to be alert on a few occasions in the first half-hour as Atalanta threatened to put the game beyond doubt. But this was only the beginning.Piotr Zielinski ensured that the teams were level at the break as he found the net at the second attempt after his initial effort was blocked by Jose Luis Palomino.
Dries Mertens completed Napoli’s comeback with a cooly slotted finish less than two minutes after the restart. The scoreline read 2-1 but was it all? No way!Atalanta needed the win tonight to ensure that Serie A title race doesn’t get away from their reach. It’s not just about the points, but the declaration of intent. Gian Piero Gasperini’s team wants the Scudetto.Defender Merih Demiral, on loan from Juventus, found himself in somewhat unfamiliar territory on 66 minutes. A ball was played by Rafael Toloi into the Turk’s path and he produced a sublime finish aking to those of Robert Lewandowski or Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The game was tied once more, but was that the end of drama in the Bay of Naples? No way!Just five minutes after Demiral made it 2-2, Atalanta produced yet another of their trademark flowing team moves that was finished off in style by Remo Freuler. Ospina dived low to his right but there was no use. Atalanta were in front again.Napoli were without their talismanic captain Lorenzo Insigne, striker Victor Osimhen and centre-back Kalidou Coulibaly. And the longer the match went on, the more it showed. The hosts were running on empty. A few desperate attacks late on failed to yield another leveller. Instead, Atalanta return back north to Bergamo with the points and a clear realization that they could go all the way this year.A blow to Napoli’s title aspirations as Atalanta close gap with league leaders Milan to 4️⃣ points ⚫️🔵 pic.twitter.com/3jTdydD7Bf— 433 (@433) December 4, 2021 SERIE 1 – ROUND 16SaturdayMilan – Salernitana 2-0 (2-0)/Kessie 5, Saelemaekers 18/Roma – Inter 0-3 (0-3)/Calhanoglu 15, Dzeko 24, Dumfries 39/Napoli – Atalanta 2-3 (1-1)/Zielinski 40, Mertens 47 – Malinovskyi 7, Demiral 66, Freuler 71/Sunday14:30: (2.90) Bologna (3.30) Fiorentina (2.60)17:00: (3.40) Spezia (3.60) Sassuolo (2.20)17:00: (3.45) Venezia (3.40) Verona (2.25)20:00: (3.45) Sampdoria (3.50) Lazio (2.20)22:45: (1.27) Juventus (6.00) Genoa (14.0)Monday20:30: (2.65) Empoli (3.30) Udinese (2.85)22:45: (3.40) Cagliari (3.25) Torino (2.35)***odds are subject to change***