With AC Milan holding on to their surprise first-leg lead against Napoli in the Champions League quarter-finals, they would have been defending on the brilliance of forward players such as Rafael Leao to provide moments of magic up front.
Having spent much of the first half under immense Neapolitan pressure, AC Milan would go on to stun the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium with exactly that in the dying seconds of the first-half.
Leao pulled off an end-to-end run akin to those seen from the man whose name adorns Napoli's stadium, and set up Olivier Giroud's tap-in for a sensational opener for Milan.
Napoli v AC Milan: Rafael Leao central to Olivier Giroud's opener
Napoli came in to the Champions League knockout stages as one of the few teams tipped with any chance of stopping Pep Guardiola's Manchester City from claiming the crown.
Having stormed to a seemingly unassailable position in the Serie A table, and stunned Liverpool in the group stages, they stood as one of the standout teams left in the competition.
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So, it was quite the surprise when AC Milan took a 1-0 lead away from the first-leg of the all-Italian quarter-final last Wednesday, and Napoli had an uphill task on their hands for the second leg on home turf.
Despite Napoli having most of the ball and the opportunities in the first half, it was AC Milan who not only won an early penalty, but scored the opener in spectacular fashion even after Olivier Giroud's spot-kick miss.
Rafael Leao picked up the ball deep inside his own half - but there was only one destination on his mind. Skipping past defender after defender, and exploiting some of that pace which he used to such devastating effect during the 2022 World Cup, Leao effortlessly glided all the way to Napoli's box, before squaring to Giroud for a tap in to seal a sensational opener for Milan.
WHAT A RUN FROM LEAO TO SET-UP GIROUD 🏃♂️💨 pic.twitter.com/LpIacw99cE
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It's a goal worthy of winning any tie and, with Napoli left chasing a 2-0 deficit on aggregate, it seems as though their hopes of an historic first European-domestic double are coming to an end.
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