NAPOLI starting XI (3-4-2-1): Meret, Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Buongiorno, Mazzocchi (subbed for Spinazzola), Anguissa, Lobotka, Olivera, Politano (subbed for David Neres), Kvaratskhelia,
Raspadori (subbed for Simeone)

Bench: Contini, Caprile, Juan Jesus, Cheddira, Rafa Marin, Zerbin, Ngonge, Gaetano, Saco, Iaccarino, Mezzoni

Goals: Di Lorenzo 45+2’, Kvaratskhelia 75’, Simeone 90+4’

BOLOGNA starting XI (4-2-3-1): Skorupski, Posch, Beukema, Erlic (subbed for Lucumì), Lykogiannis (subbed for Juan Miranda), Freuler, Moro, Orsolini (subbed for Odgaard), Aebischer (subbed for Fabbian), Ndoye (subbed for Karlsson), Castro

Bench: Bagnolini, Ravaglia, Holm, Ilic, Corazza, Pobega, Dallinga, De Silvestri, Byar, Urbanski

Conte became Napoli’s fifth coach in little more than a year when he was hired in June, but his new team crumbled 3-0 at Hellas Verona in his first match back in Italy’s topflight.

Napoli also lost Kvaratskhelia to a minor head injury in that match, but the winger was back on Sunday — despite also having just returned from his home country after his wife gave birth to their first child this week.

Kvaratskhelia hit the crossbar shortly before halftime with a looping header from the tightest of angles, but Napoli didn’t have to wait much longer for the first goal under Conte.

Giovanni Di Lorenzo started the move in first half added time, cutting inside from the right before passing to Kvaratskhelia, who played him a superb ball back, dinking it over the Bologna defence for Di Lorenzo to sweep into the far side of the net.

And Kvaratskhelia got on the scoresheet himself in the 75th, racing downfield from just inside the Bologna half and firing into the bottom left corner from the edge of the area, with the help of a slight deflection.

Kvaratskhelia also had a hand in the 94th-minute third as he threaded the ball through to new signing David Neres, who rolled it across for Giovanni Simeone to slot past Łukasz Skorupski.

“The punch in the face we got in Verona made us immediately understand that if we want to forget the past we have to stay in the centre of the ring, you give punches and you get them, but you have to keep standing,” Conte said.

AAP