Napoli lose Villarreal thriller after four-minute collapse

The moment that mattered most came between the 22nd and 26th minute. Højlund struck a post that could have made it 2-0. A minute later, Mikautadze equalised. Three minutes after that, Mouriño put Villarreal ahead. In four minutes, Napoli went from a near-certain two-goal lead to trailing by one. Everything else in the match was played uphill from there.

A game of fouls, not control

In the second half, Napoli held their ground more through effort than play. They committed fifteen fouls to Villarreal's eight — almost double — and picked up three bookings, for Giovane, De Bruyne and Di Lorenzo, against two for Villarreal. These are the numbers of a team chasing the game, one that ends up stopping the side in control with fouls rather than positioning.

Napoli tried to change things, making five substitutions between the 60th and 72nd minute: Spinazzola, Lang, Neres, Lobotka and Lucca were all sent on to shift the balance. But it was Villarreal's bench that decided the night. Oluwaseyi, on since the 63rd minute, settled the match in the 86th minute with an assist from Pérez, who had come on just three minutes earlier. Villarreal found what they needed from their substitutes. Napoli did not.