Rafa Benitez suspended one game, Gonzalo Higuain fined €10,000 after Parma post-match meltdown

Not only did Napoli melt down during their match against Parma, but their frustration boiled over afterwards. Multiple shouting matches broke out, Gonzalo Higuain had to be restrained to keep him away from Parma goalkeeper Antonio Mirante, and Rafa Benitez could be seen screaming at anyone and everyone nearby.

Now they're paying the price for that lack of control. Literally.

Rafa Benitez has been suspended for one Serie A match, meaning that he won't be on the touchline when Napoli play Cesena on Monday. Now, that hardly seems like the most necessary match for him to be around for, but lacking a manager for any match can still have a notable impact, and is worth bearing in mind at times like this when he's hip-deep in contract negotiations with the club.

Benitez earned his suspension for screaming "So this is Italian football?!" among other things after the match, which the Lega Serie A disciplinary committee found to be insulting and demeaning behavior. The fact that he lost complete control of his players and staff involved in various verbal altercations and nearly coming to blows multiple times after the final whistle probably played in to his punishment as well.

Gonzalo Higuain also earned a €10,000 fine for his actions, charging Mirante and repeatedly calling Parma players "failures" among other less pleasant things. Apparently he and Mirante have already buried the hatchet, though, talking after things had calmed down and putting what happened behind them. Mirante has even offered to pay half of Higuain's fine, apparently feeling he was partially at fault for how things escalated.

It's unfortunate that Napoli are dealing with this kind of distraction this late in the season. Napoli need to be focused if they want a real chance to pip Lazio or Roma to a top three spot in Serie A and push for a Europa League title, but right now there seems to very little of that. Hopefully things get turned around quickly, but right now there's an air of doubt and concern around the club, and that's not a great place to be in.