Cavani sees off Cagliari

Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani put the home side ahead from the penalty spot at the start of the second half, though Robert Acquafresca levelled matters on 56 minutes.

Cavani’s second goal of the evening just four minutes later gave Napoli the points, however, and moved his side up into third, just a point behind champions Internazionale.

Napoli went into the match as firm favourites, though encountered a Cagliari side who defended resolutely throughout the first half, and the only real goalscoring chance of the first half fell to Cagliari’s Acquafresca, who toe-poked the ball over the bar after springing the Napoli offside trap.

The hosts stepped up their tempo dramatically after half-time, however, and reaped their rewards almost immediately as Marek Hamsik charged into the area and was tugged down by Lorenzo Ariaudo.

Cavani stepped up, and sent keeper Michael Agazzi the wrong way from the penalty spot to end his lean spell of four games without a goal.

Napoli’s slicker passing and greater movement had Cagliari chasing shadows, which made it even more of a shock when the visitors conjured an equaliser soon after. Andrea Cossu swung in a superb cross from the right flank, and Acquafresca showed great persistence to beat Paolo Cannavaro to the ball, and then react quickest to seize onto it after it had escaped his control and slot it low past Morgan de Sanctis from a tight angle.

The goal failed to knock Napoli’s confidence, however, and they refused to be knocked out of their rhythm. Just four minutes later, Hamsik lofted a delicious ball over the top of the Cagliari defence for Cavani, who beat the offside trap before volleying the ball over the advancing Agazzi with the outside of his right foot to bring up his 22nd goal of a highly impressive season.

Cavani then headed just over from an inviting Ezequiel Lavezzi cross, and though Cagliari rained a succession of high balls in on the Napoli area as the clock ticked down, they failed to create the clear goalscoring opportunity that could have given them an unlikely, and barely-deserved point.