Napoli 2-0 Cagliari: Conte's side are crowned Serie A champion, McTominay scores

Napoli clinched the Scudetto for the second season out of the last three thanks to their 2-0 win over Cagliari on Friday evening in Serie A's final round.

Match Report

Heading into the last round of the Serie A season, Napoli held a one-point lead over title rivals Inter Milan, meaning a win for them, or simply matching Inter's result, would secure the title for Antonio Conte's side.

And that's precisely what happened on Friday with Napoli beating Cagliari 2-0 thanks to goals from Romelu Lukaku and Scott McTominay, while Inter brushed Como aside 2-0 concurrently.

Interestingly, had the two sides finished level on points, they would have needed a playoff to determine the title.

Napoli's victory was their 24th of the season. They haven't been the biggest scorers in the league, but Conte's men have maintained a mean defence, losing only four times and conceding just 27 goals in the 38 rounds played.

Inter, meanwhile, were neck-and-neck with Napoli for so long until a pair of losses in late April (to Bologna and Roma) handed Napoli the advantage.

Despite a couple of wobbles, drawing with both Bologna and Genoa, Conte's men have largely been unstoppable in the league this year, losing only once in 2024 - away at Como in February.

It is just the fourth time in history that the club have won the Serie A title. They claimed it twice in the 1980s, driven by the magic of Diego Maradona, and two seasons ago under the management of Luciano Spalletti.

Conte's success is remarkable for the fact that this is just his first season at the helm of the Partenopei. Previously, he has won Serie A as a manager on four other occasions, three times with Juventus and once with Inter, but this title is arguably his greatest of those achievements. He has now become the first-ever coach to win Serie A with three sides.

Not only did Napoli have to reshape their attack this season after loaning out striker Victor Osimhen, but they also sold star winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to PSG during the January transfer window.

In the absence of those two previously talismanic players, new stars have emerged in Naples. Most notably, Romelu Lukaku, who has led the line with 14 goals this season and former Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay, who has been a man reborn in Italy, contributing with 12 goals and stealing hearts and headlines throughout the season. Fittingly, both scored on Friday.

Other standout players have been their lynchpin pivot, Stanislav Lobotka, and the trusted Italian guard of Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Matteo Politano, and Giacomo Raspadori.

Match Events

0' The match is about to start!

2' Both Inter boss Inzaghi and Napoli's Conte are serving touchline bans today

4' Giacomo Raspadori's shot goes just wide of the keeper's far post

10' A rapid counter sees Gilmour's effort saved and Politano blazes the rebound over

20' Lukaku and Yerry Mina, two ex-Everton men, get into a bit of a wrestle

25' Lukaku spins Mina but the defender recovers to slide in and block his shot

32' Napoli's Politano and Cagliari's Makoumbou are both booked

37' Napoli's Mathias Olivera heads wide from a corner

40' Match Event for Napoli vs Cagliari

42' GOAL! McTominay opens the scoring with a flying volley! Napoli 1-0 Cagliari

51' GOAL! Lukaku beats the defenders and doubles the lead! Napoli 2-0 Cagliari

60' Napoli bring on David Neres for Matteo Politano, who hobbles off a bit

63' Lukaku squares it for David Neres, whose effort is saved by the goalkeeper

65' Romelu Lukaku heads wide from about one yard out from David Neres' cross

76' Standing ovation for Napoli goalscorer Lukaku as he's replaced by Giovanni

80' Giovanni and David Neres play a one-two and Neres' shot is blocked in the box

82' Cagliari bring on 23-year-old keeper Ciocci for his first-team debut

Line-ups

Napoli XI: Lukaku, Spinazzola, Di Lorenzo, Politano, Rrahmani, Meret, Anguissa, M.Olivera, Giacomo Raspadori, McTominay, Gilmour

Subs: Juan, Lobotka, Simone Scuffet, G.Simeone, Nikita Contini, Pasquale Mazzocchi, Billing, Neres, Okafor, Buongiorno, Cyril Ngonge, Rafa Marín, Luis Hasa

Cagliari XI: Viola, Tommaso Augello, Mina, Deiola, Luperto, Alen Sherri, Antoine Makoumbou, Michel Adopo, Gabriele Zappa, Piccoli, Nadir Zortea

Subs: Palomino, Marin, Florinel Coman, Jankto, Adam Obert, Giuseppe Ciocci, Alessandro Vinciguerra, Matteo Prati, Velizar-Iliya Iliev, Nicola Pintus, Andrea Cogoni, Kingstone Mutandwa