Italian football officials have announced further punishments against three Napoli players and manager Walter Mazzarri in the aftermath of last weekend's Italian Super Cup. Napoli lost the match 4-2 in extra time to Juventus, thanks in large part to the referee sending off two Napoli players right before the end of the second half. Goran Pandev and Andrea Dossena were both handed two-match bans, while Juan Zuniga will be suspended for one-match.
Napoli Will Begin Season Without Manager and Three Players
Napoli lost the Super Cup and now will start the season with multiple suspended players and without their manager.
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Pandev and Zuniga were both sent off by the match referee in the final minutes of regular time, leaving Napoli with nine men during the 30 minutes of extra time. Pandev received a straight red for “insulting the referee” while Zuniga picked up his second yellow card for a harsh tackle. Mazzarri was also given a one-match ban for blowing up at the match officials on the touchline.
Dossena's ban is borderline ridiculous. The defender will miss Napoli's first two league matches because of "threatening expression" made towards the assistant refere at the match.
Just in case that wasn’t enough, Napoli could also face punishment for refusing to take part in the post-match award ceremony.
All three players and Mazzarri will miss Napoli's Serie A opener against Palermo on Sunday, August 25th, while Pandev and Dossena will also be unavailable for the team's match against Fiorentina on Sunday, September 1st. Both matches are at home for the Partenopei.
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