Inspirational Kvaratskhelia Strikes to Keep Napoli’s European Dreams Alive in Thrilling Fiorentina 2-2 Draw
Napoli, the former Italian champions who have been dethroned, are on the edge when it comes to their hopes of securing a spot in European football next season. Their fate was uncertain after a 2-2 draw with Fiorentina in the Serie A clash on Friday.
The match saw Napoli take the lead in the eighth minute thanks to defender Amir Rrahmani, who scored from a corner by Matteo Politano. However, Fiorentina fought back as Cristiano Biraghi equalized with a free-kick in the 40th minute. M’Bala Nzola then fired a shot into the bottom corner to put the hosts in the lead two minutes later.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Napoli responded with a brilliant free-kick early in the second half to salvage a point for his team. Fiorentina, who currently sit in eighth place with 54 points and a game in hand, are five points behind Lazio in seventh. Despite this, they still have a chance to secure a spot in the Europa League, either by surpassing Lazio or by winning the Europa Conference League final against Olympiakos.
Napoli, in ninth place with 52 points, still have a slim possibility of reaching the Europa Conference League playoffs. Fiorentina’s left-back Biraghi has scored six goals from direct free-kicks since the start of the season, which ranks him second only to James Ward-Prowse in Europe’s top five leagues. Kvaratskhelia’s equalizer from a free-kick marks the first time both teams have scored through that method in a Serie A match since 2018.
