Frosinone Stuns Napoli 4-0 to Reach Italian Cup Quarters for First Time 

Frosinone's Giuseppe Caso, right, celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game during the Italian Cup soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023. (AP)
Frosinone's Giuseppe Caso, right, celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game during the Italian Cup soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023. (AP)
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Frosinone Stuns Napoli 4-0 to Reach Italian Cup Quarters for First Time 

Frosinone's Giuseppe Caso, right, celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game during the Italian Cup soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023. (AP)
Frosinone's Giuseppe Caso, right, celebrates scoring his side's second goal of the game during the Italian Cup soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples, Italy, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023. (AP)

Frosinone’s best cup run continued as it stunned defending Serie A champion Napoli by winning 4-0 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Tuesday to reach the Italian Cup quarterfinals.

Frosinone, which had never even reached the round of 16 previously, will next face either Juventus or Salernitana.

Napoli rested a number of its key players, including Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, although it brought on the key duo in the 63rd minute, with the score 0-0.

Frosinone took the lead just two minutes later when Enzo Barrenechea was left relatively unmarked to head Luca Garritano’s corner into the far top side of the net.

It was Barrenechea’s first goal for Frosinone after joining on loan from Juventus — the team the 22-year-old Argentine could now face in the quarterfinals.

An even worse defensive error saw the visitors double their advantage five minutes later as a woeful pass from Napoli defender Giovanni Di Lorenzo saw Giuseppe Caso race through one-on-one with home goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini and he deposited into the bottom right corner.

Di Lorenzo made another mistake in the final minute when he fouled Matías Soulé in the penalty area and Walid Cheddira — who is on loan from Napoli — converted the resulting spotkick.

Substitute Abdou Harroui also scored in stoppage time to cap a wonderful night for Frosinone, which celebrated joyfully in front of the visiting fans.

Giovanni Simeone had a goal ruled out for Napoli in the first half for handball in the buildup.

Frosinone will play its quarterfinal on Jan. 10. Juventus hosts Salernitana on Jan. 4.



Government: Soccer-related Arrests Have Risen in England

Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Group D - General view of Wembley Stadium ahead of the England v Croatia match - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - June 12, 2021 REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo
Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Group D - General view of Wembley Stadium ahead of the England v Croatia match - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - June 12, 2021 REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo
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Government: Soccer-related Arrests Have Risen in England

Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Group D - General view of Wembley Stadium ahead of the England v Croatia match - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - June 12, 2021 REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo
Soccer Football - Euro 2020 - Group D - General view of Wembley Stadium ahead of the England v Croatia match - Wembley Stadium, London, Britain - June 12, 2021 REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo

Soccer-related arrests are the on rise in England and Wales, the UK government said on Thursday. The highest number of cases were recorded at West Ham matches for the third year in a row, The Associated Press reported.
There were 2,584 football-related arrests in the 2023-24 season — a 14% increase on the previous year, figures released by the Home Office showed.
The government said the rise was driven by arrests relating to the possession of class A drugs and this year's European Championship in Germany.
The rate of arrests over the season was 5.5 per 100,000 fans attending matches in the top six levels of men’s English soccer, the Welsh league and the top two levels of women's soccer. Statistics also covered matches involving the England and Wales national teams, the Champions League final staged at Wembley Stadium, and age group matches.
“It is important that these figures are put into context. Last season around 47 million people attended men’s domestic and international matches, the highest number we have on record, and the vast majority of football fans are law-abiding citizens who want to support their team," said chief constable Mark Roberts, who is the lead for soccer policing in the UK. “However, there are a small number of fans who commit offences, and we will continue to work closely with (prosecutors) and our other partners to ensure that those responsible are held accountable."
According to the figures, there were no arrests at women's matches, despite their growing popularity and increased attendances.
Figures showed 281 arrests related to Euro 2024.
The club with the highest number of arrests was West Ham, with 103. Manchester City and Manchester United were joint second with 88. Arsenal was fourth (85) and Chelsea sixth (67).
West Ham also had the highest number of banning orders (93), with Man United second (89). Second-tier Millwall was third with 82 banning orders.
A banning order can last from three to 10 years and can be issued by courts for reasons such as a conviction for a soccer-related offense.
There were 825 new banning orders, the highest number since 2010-11.
The most common type of arrest was for public disorder, which made up 43% of cases, with violent disorder making up 19%. Possession of class A drugs accounted for 13%.
The throwing of missiles was the most commonly reported incident, at 416 matches, with pyrotechnics reported at 394 matches.
There were reports of hate crime incidents in 341 matches, which related to issues including race (226) and sexual orientation (113).
There were 423 incidents of online hate crime.