Napoli was blaming himself on Tuesday in the Italian cup tournament. Against Serie A-closer Cremonese, the team of coach Luciano Spalletti lost after penalties.
After 90 minutes, the duel between the leader and the last of the Serie A had ended in 2-2. Napoli had full control of the game after a false start thanks to goals from Juan Jesus and Giovanni Simeone, but a goal from Felix Afena-Gyan in the 87th minute saw Cremonese go into extra time.
In extra time, Napoli still had enough chances to decide the game. Cremonese was left with ten men after a red card for Leonardo Sernicola, Simeone hit the post and substitute top scorer Victor Osimhen missed another big chance.
While it started to rain and thunder, a penalty shootout had to bring the decision. Napoli midfielder Stanislav Lobotka was the only one not to score in it. Afena-Gyan shot Cremonese to the quarter-finals with the last penalty kick.
Due to the loss, Napoli is still in the race for two prizes this season. In the league, the team from Naples is chasing its first national title since the 1989/1990 season. In the Champions League, a diptych with Eintracht Frankfurt awaits the leader of Serie A in the eighth finals.
For Cremonese, the cup win is by far the highlight of this season. The team of Cyriel Dessers, who was missing against Napoli, did not win a single game in the competition this season. A duel with AS Roma awaits Cremonese in the quarterfinals.
In addition to AS Roma and Cremonese, Internazionale, Fiorentina and Torino are also certain of a place in the quarterfinals. The last three eighth finals (Atalanta-Spezia, Lazio-Bologna and Juventus-Monza) will take place on Thursday.
