Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was deemed the danger-man before Barcelona faced Napoli in their Champions League round of 16 encounter on Wednesday.
However, 60 minutes into the game, Napoli's new coach had seen enough of the man nicknamed 'Kvaradona'. He left him on for 8 more minutes before hooking him off.
Kvaratskhelia's face after being subbed off so early in the second half said it all. He was fuming!
There's no question about it, Jules Kounde did a thorough job on Napoli's brilliant winger while Araujo and Martinez dealt with Osimhen.
In many episodes during the game, Kounde was spotted sticking ever so close to Kvaratskhelia, limiting his touches and forcing him into making errors.
Kounde just wouldn't let Kvaratskhelia breathe
The Frenchman never allowed the gap between him and Kvara to become too wide.
Thus, Kvara touched the ball just 36 times during the game, failed to record a shot on goal and was dispossessed 16 times.
Explaining why he decided to take of Kvaratskhelia so early, Napoli's new boss Calzona said:
“I keep the players on the field who are doing well, I don’t look at their names.
“Kvara is a top player, he will help us out the way he did last season. Kvara was substituted, his performance was not fantastic, but it’s not unusual for a player to have an off night.
“Kvara will knuckle down, work harder. I was not disappointed with his movements tactically. He was lacking the moment to get past his man, but I am fairly satisfied.”
That was one of Kounde's better performances and Barca fans will hope he replicates it more regularly.
