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Akor Adams

Super Eagles striker Akor Adams delivered a stellar performance to help bottom-placed Venezia secure a stunning 1-0 victory over Napoli in their Serie A encounter at the Stadio Pier Luigi Penzo.

The triumph marks Venezia’s first win of the season and comes in the debut match under new head coach Davide Nicola, who replaced the dismissed Giovanni Stroppa. Prior to the fixture, the club had endured a dismal start with six consecutive defeats, scoring five goals and conceding 16.

Despite dominating possession, Napoli struggled to break down a resilient home defense during a quiet opening half. The turning point arrived four minutes into the second half when a long ball from Simon Sohm released Adams.

The 26-year-old forward used his physical strength to fend off defender Amir Rrahmani, cut inside, and unleashed a shot that took a decisive deflection off Rrahmani to wrong-foot goalkeeper Alex Meret.

The strike marked Adams’ second league goal of the campaign and his fourth across all competitions since joining from Sevilla in the summer.

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Chasing an equalizer, Napoli introduced Kevin De Bruyne and Rasmus Hojlund off the bench. The visitors came close when Juan Jesus cleared an effort off the line, and they were awarded a penalty in the 68th minute after Matias Moreno brought down Hojlund.

However, De Bruyne’s weak penalty kick was comfortably smothered on the line by goalkeeper Filip Stankovic.

Stankovic produced a man-of-the-match display, making nine crucial saves including a dramatic flying stop to deny Stanislav Lobotka to secure the historic clean sheet.

The victory lifts Venezia onto three points at the foot of the table, narrowing the gap on their relegation rivals. Meanwhile, Napoli missed an opportunity to break into the top four, remaining in ninth place with 10 points following their third defeat of the season.