Cesena: Napoli beat 10-man Cesena 3-1 on Saturday to open their Serie A campaign and warm up for their Champions League debut at Manchester City next week.
Napoli's Ezequiel Lavezzi and Cesena's Roberto Guana traded goals in the first half before Hugo Campagnaro and Marek Hamsik scored after Cesena's French defender Yohan Benalouane was sent off for a second yellow card in the 55th minute.
Having finished third last season, Napoli are preparing for their first appearance in the Champions League since the competition was renamed in 1992. Napoli last competed in the old European Cup after Diego Maradona led the southern club to Italian titles in 1987 and 1990.
Lavezzi put Napoli ahead three minutes in following a defensive error and Guana equalized in the 24th after beating defender Paolo Cannavaro to a cross from Brazilian teammate Eder.
Campagnaro scored from two yards in the 67th following a corner kick and Hamsik found the target with a powerful shot from the edge of the area in the 87th.
Also, newly-signed Napoli forward Goran Pandev - who came on as a third striker - hit the crossbar in the 85th during the first Serie A match played on an artificial pitch.
Earlier, AC Milan and Lazio opened the season with a 2-2 draw on Friday.
Juventus host Parma on Sunday for the first official match in their new stadium and newly-signed forwards Diego Forlan and Mauro Zarate make their debuts for Inter Milan at Palermo.
Also on Sunday, it will be - Catania vs Siena; Chievo Verona vs Novara; Fiorentina vs Bologna; Genoa vs Atalanta; Lecce vs Udinese; and Roma vs Cagliari.
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