Napoli wasted chances and eventually had to ride their luck to beat SC Braga with Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s volley and an own goal, but start their Champions League campaign on the right foot.
The Partenopei had one point from their last two Serie A games, so were lacking in confidence after the transition to new coach Rudi Garcia. Braga lost home and away to Fiorentina last season in the Conference League.
Victor Osimhen should’ve opened the scoring within five minutes when he pounced on a poor Jose Fonte back-pass, but fired straight at Matheus.
The goalkeeper then made a stunning double save on headers from Osimhen and Giovanni Di Lorenzo in the same move.
However, Amir Rrahmani limped off with a muscular problem to make way for Leo Ostigard.
Osimhen went even closer with a scorcher from the edge of the area that cannoned against the crossbar, though Braga threatened on the counter from that same move with an Abel Ruiz header wide, then Ostigard got back for a toe-poke tackle on Ricardo Horta clear on goal.
Napoli were awarded a penalty when a shot was parried into the path of Osimhen, who could not get the tap-in because of Niakate, but after viewing it again on VAR, the referee saw that the Napoli striker crashed into the defender instead.
The Partenopei finally broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time, as Osimhen knocked down a Kvicha Kvaratskhelia cross from the left and Di Lorenzo smashed it on the volley off the underside of the crossbar.
Abel Ruiz only grazed his head to a dangerous cross and Kvaratskhelia volleyed off target at the back post, while Osimhen’s scorcher flashed a few inches wide.
Napoli continued to push and Zielinski steered it across the face of goal with the inside of the boot rather than going for power, undisturbed at the back post.
It proved a costly error, because Braga equalised with one of their very few attempts on target, Napoli losing the ball cheaply playing out of defence and Zalazar’s cross finding the Bruma glancing header.
The game still wasn’t over and Napoli turned it around four minutes later, as Zielinski’s cross was redirected clumsily into his own net by Niakate from four yards.
Garcia’s men rode their luck with the final kick of the game, when Pizzi thumped the near post from the tightest of angles.
Braga 1-2 Napoli
Di Lorenzo 45 (N), Bruma 84 (B), Niakate og 88 (N)
Player statistic
| 19' |  |
Frank Anguissa | ||
| 41' | |
Victor Osimhen | ||
| Álvaro Djaló | |
45' | ||
| 45+1' |  |
Giovanni Di Lorenzo |
| José Fonte | |
55' | ||
| 56' | |
Matteo Politano | ||
| Cristian Borja | |
66' | ||
| 79' | |
Giacomo Raspadori | ||
| Bruma (Assist: Rodrigo Zalazar) |
|
84' | ||
| 86' | |
Mathías Olivera | ||
| 88' |  |
Sikou Niakaté | ||
| 90+3' | |
Juan Jesus |
Match statistic
Garcia is too defensive.