By Anna Italia
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73% Ball possession NAPOLI and 27% Ball Possession SAMPDORIA
Napoli 2 – 1 Sampdoria 
22′ Manolo Gabbiadini 30′ Elseid Hysaj (own goal)
95′ Lorenzo Tonelli

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Serie A Standing BEFORE the game:
Napoli, 3rd position with 35 points and a positive goal difference of +19
Sampdoria, 13th position with 23 points and a negative goal difference of-3
| POS | TEAM | P | W | D | L | GOALS | DIFF | POINTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Napoli | 18 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 40:21 | 19 | 35 |
| 13 | Sampdoria | 18 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 21:24 | -3 | 23 |
Napoli surviving the pressure to win this home game to keep up the race for the Scudetto alive. A match with an unexpected twist when Lorenzo Tonelli scored the winner goal in the agonizing 95th minute to claim the victory. Napoli reaching 38 points is -4 points below Juventus holding the first position with 42 points and 1 game pending. There are 49 precedents between Napoli – Sampdoria in Serie A. Stats showing Napoli with 21 wins, 19 draws, and Sampdoria with 9 wins. Napoli scoring 66 goals and Sampdoria 44 goals.
Oh well…. a bad start for Napoli. It’s Sampdoria to take the lead in the 30th minute after the own goal by Napoli defender Elseid Hysaj.

Photo: facebook.com/sampdoria
Napoli equalizing in the 77th minute. It is forward Manolo Gabbiadini to defeat Sampdoria goalkeeper Puggioni from close range with a left footed shot to the bottom right corner. The assist is by José Callejón.

Photo: facebook.com/SSCNapoli
This is it….. the final minutes and Napoli battling until the end. It is forward Lorenzo Tonelli to delight the fans at the San Paolo Stadium by scoring the winner goal in the 95th minute.
- There is much expectation from the ex-Napoli players playing for Sampdoria: Forward Fabio Quagliarella and Luca Cigarini. For Napoli, the ex is forward Manolo Gabbiadini who played for Sampdoria.
Here is NAPOLI official starting lineup by coach Maurizio Sarri:
NAPOLI (4-3-3): Reina; Hysaj, Chiricheș, Tonelli, Strinić; Allan, Jorginho, Hamšík; Callejón, Mertens, L. Insigne.
Here is SAMPDORIA official starting lineup by coach Marco Giampaolo:
SAMPDORIA: Puggioni, Barreto, Alvarez, Pereira, Schick, Praet, Regini, Silvestre, Quagliarella, Torreira, Skriniar
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Stats BEFORE the game. Top scorer of NAPOLI: Dries Mertens with 11 goals
Top scorer of SAMPDORIA: Luis Muriel with 6 goals
| NAPOLI | GOALS | GOALS | SAMPDORIA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mertens, Dries | 11 | 6 | Muriel, Luis |
| Callejon, Jose | 7 | 4 | Schick, Patrik |
| Hamsik, Marek | 5 | 4 | Quagliarella, Fabio |
| Insigne, Lorenzo | 5 | 3 | Fernandes, Bruno |
| Milik, Arek | 4 | 2 | Barreto, Edgar |
Stats. Here are the last 3 games of NAPOLI: 2 wins, 1 draw
| 22/12/16 | SA | Fiorentina – Napoli | 3:3 | 18 |
| 18/12/16 | SA | Napoli – Turin | 5:3 | 17 |
| 11/12/16 | SA | Cagliari – Napoli | 0:5 | 16 |
Stats. Here are the last 3 games of SAMPDORIA : 1 draw, 2 lost
| 22/12/16 | SA | Sampdoria – Udinese | 0:0 | 18 |
| 18/12/16 | SA | Chievo – Sampdoria | 2:1 | 17 |
| 10/12/16 | SA | Sampdoria – Lazio | 1:2 | 16 |

Photo: .facebook.com/sampdoria

Photo: facebook.com/sampdoria

2016 – 2017 Italian Serie A Week 19
Napoli 2 – 1 Sampdoria
Saturday 7 January 2017
San Paolo Stadium
Naples, Italy
20:45
Referee: DI BELLO
Assistants: MANGANELLI – LO CICERO
Fourth Official: PEGORIN
ADD1: BANTI
ADD2: FABBRI
Goals: 30′ Elseid Hysaj (own goal), 77′ Manolo Gabbiadini (N), 95′ Lorenzo Tonelli (N)
Official lineups – formations:
NAPOLI (4-3-3): Reina; Hysaj, Chiricheș, Tonelli, Strinić; Allan, Jorginho, Hamšík; Callejón, Mertens, L. Insigne.
Subs: Rafael, Sepe, Giaccherini, Maggio, Maksimović, Zieliński, Gabbiadini, Rog, Pavoletti, Diawara, R.Insigne, Lasicki.
Coach: Maurizio Sarri.
SAMPDORIA: Puggioni, Barreto, Alvarez, Pereira, Schick, Praet, Regini, Silvestre, Quagliarella, Torreira, Skriniar.
Subs: Krapikas, Tozzo, Dodo, Muriel, Fernandes, Linetty, Palombo, Pavlovic, Cigarini, Djuricic, Bereszynski, Budimir.
Coach: Marco Giampaolo.