Rudi Garcia ‘could be fired as Napoli head coach five months after taking over’, with internal talks planned after the reigning Serie A champions lost 1-0 to Empoli in stoppage time

• Rudi Garcia’s role as head coach of Napoli is under threat after a late defeat 
• Empoli substitute Viktor Kovalenko scored in injury time to amplify the pressure
• DOMINIC KING: I don’t understand what football is anymore – It’s All Coming Up 

Napoli are thought to be discussing Rudi Garcia’s managerial position internally after Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to Empoli, according to reports.

Substitute Viktor Kovalenko scored in injury time at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona to give the visitors the three points, and add additional scrutiny onto Garcia’s role.  

Garcia only took over the role in June after the resignation of Luciano Spalletti, who led them to last season’s Serie A title, but question marks have been hanging over the new guy for more than a month, and internal talks are proposed imminently. 

Fabrizio Romano noted on X (the platform previously known as Twitter) that Napoli President Aurelio de Laurentiis left the stadium ahead of final whistle.

Last year’s champions are in fourth place in the Serie A table after the defeat to Empoli. 

Napoli coach Rudi Garcia could be fired amid internal talks after their 1-0 defeat to Empoli

Viktor Kovalenko, right, struck in stoppage time to give Empoli a surprise win at Napoli 

Your browser does not support iframes.

It could have been so different had the hosts taken two early chances, but they came up against inspired Empoli goalkeeper Etrit Berisha.

The Albania international tipped Matteo Politano’s effort wide and then kept out Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa’s header from the resulting corner.

Napoli thought they had taken the lead in the 27th minute after Giovanni Simeone poked home but he was ruled offside.

It looked like Napoli would be mulling over two points dropped as the game headed into injury time, but things got a lot worse as Empoli stole the win.

In the first minute of injury time Kovalenko found space on the edge of the area and found the far post with a delicious curling effort which beat goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini and went in off the post.

There was no time for Napoli to respond and Garcia was left staring down the barrel.

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

Your browser does not support iframes.

Source: Read Full Article