A Giovanni Simeone double and a debut goal for Leo Ostigard gave Napoli a 3-0 victory against Rangers at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Matchday 5 of the Champions League on Wednesday evening.
It was a match in which the Partenopei dominated from start to finish as the Scottish giants struggled to find any rhythm in the game.
Napoli sit on top of Group A with 15 points and only a heavy defeat away to Liverpool on the final matchday can prevent the Neapolitans from finishing on top of the group.
Simeone lays foundations for Napoli victory
The Partenopei took the lead after just 11 minutes when Giovanni Di Lorenzo played a sublime through-ball to Simeone and the Argentine beat Allan McGregor in the Rangers goal with an angled drive. Simeone got his brace just five minutes later after Mario Rui delivered a pinpoint cross onto the head of the striker.
Tanguy Ndombele nearly added the third but his shot hit the crossbar while Giacomo Raspadori headed straight at McGregor at the back post. Rangers struggled to break into the opposition half in the first 45 minutes but Alfredo Morelos was able to force a save out of Partenopei goalkeeper Alex Meret before the break.
Napoli started the second half in the same manner as the first and McGregor made a save to deny Simeone the hat-trick. The Azzurri did lower the tempo for some time, allowing the Scottish giants to have some spells of possession, but Meret was not forced into making any saves. However, McGregor was forced into action again to save a Mario Rui effort.
Luciano Spalletti’s side eventually got their third goal when a Raspadori corner from the left found the head of Ostigard after 80 minutes. Simeone nearly got a hat-trick but his tame effort went wide.
Napoli make more history with victory against Rangers
Finding the back of the net three times meant that Napoli’s tally has reached 20 goals, therefore becoming the first Italian club to do in the Champions League group stage. The Partenopei also earned their 12th consecutive win in competitive matches, a club record.
Giovanni Simeone became the second Argentine to score four goals in his first four Champions League games. The first was one was his father, current Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone.
