Cracks start to show as Napoli lose first leg of Champions League quarterfinals

Napoli defender Kim Min-jae in action against AC Milan's Sandro Tonali during a UEFA Champions League quarterfinal match at San Siro in Milan, Italy on Wednesday. [EPA/YONHAP]

Napoli’s near-perfect season took another blow on Wednesday with a 1-0 loss to AC Milan in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals, leaving the Partonopei with some serious work to do in the second leg next week.

Ismaël Bennacer’s first-half goal secured the win for Milan at San Siro in Milan, Italy, knocking Napoli back despite the visitors clearly having the upper hand for the majority of the game.

Napoli started strong — Khvicha Kvaratskheli tested things within the first minute — and looked confident throughout, but an unusual inability to convert crippled their efforts on the road.

That undoing was cemented in the 74th minute when André-Frank Zambo Anguissa was shown his second yellow in five minutes and sent off, leaving the visitors with 10 men for the final 15 minutes.

Korean center-back Kim Min-Jae played the full 90 minutes, taking a yellow card in the 78th minute for what looked like dissent after a fairly minor foul.

The 1-0 loss underscores how difficult this quarterfinal matchup could be for Napoli, who are generally considered one of the possible front runners in the Champions League this season but have found Milan in particular an especially difficult nut to crack.

Napoli have lost just three games in Serie A, where they lead by 16 points, so far this season. The biggest of those by far was a 4-0 loss to Milan earlier this month, that one at home at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples.

The second loss in as many weeks is hugely disappointing for Napoli, especially with their greatest run ever at the Champions League now on the line. The Partonopei will have the home advantage next week, but that recent 4-0 loss is bound to hang over the team.

Speaking after the game, the normally taciturn Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti admitted he thought the red card was unjust.

“Commenting on games afterwards is a waste of time, because we cannot change what happened,” Spalletti said according to a translation by Football Italia. “I saw a great attitude from the team, we tried to take the game to Milan even when down to 10 men. I congratulated Maignan on his saves, Milan are a great side and we played the way we needed to, the way I expected us to. So well done lads.

“We trust the squad. Any absence is damaging at this stage of the season, but we also have players who can fill in, which is why we are where we are. We are sad not to have Anguissa, as it feels unjust not to have him, but there’s nothing we can do.”

Napoli will return to Serie A for a game against Verona on Saturday before facing Milan in the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]