Napoli continued their Serie A title cost on Saturday by coming from behind to win a feverish contest with rivals Juventus 2-1 and go six factors clear on the high of the pile.
Antonio Conte’s facet bounced again from Randal Kolo Muani’s strike moments from half-time in his Juve debut. Napoli received their seventh straight match because of a bullet header from Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Romelu Lukaku’s 69th-minute penalty.
Napoli are looking a second Scudetto in three seasons and Saturday’s win, and particularly their dominant efficiency within the second half, was one other signal that they, and never Inter Milan, are the group to beat.
Six factors from clashes with Atalanta and Juve in successive weeks have stored Inter at bay with the reigning champions at lowly Lecce on Sunday hoping to halve the hole that separates Simone Inzaghi’s group from Napoli.
The roar that accompanied the hosts’ objectives and the ultimate whistle underlined the renewed perception that supporters have of their group after watching Napoli put up a dreadful defence of the Scudetto title final season.
Juve, in the meantime, are 16 factors behind Napoli in fifth after falling to their first league defeat of the season, not the place anticipated when Thiago Motta changed Massimiliano Allegri as coach in the summertime.
Kolo Muani gave Juve a deserved half-time lead two days after lastly finishing his mortgage transfer to Turin from Paris Saint-Germain, the place he had been frozen out by coach Luis Enrique.
He was in the precise place on the proper time within the forty third minute to spin and lash dwelling his third membership objective of the season after Anguissa challenged for the ball and despatched it straight to the France ahead.
However Napoli have been a unique group after the break. After Alex Meret by some means stored out Lukaku’s close-range header the Juve goalkeeper may do nothing to cease Anguissa thumping dwelling the leveller from Matteo Politano’s cross.
And there was solely going to be one winner as soon as Lukaku calmly rolled dwelling his ninth Napoli objective from the spot after Scott McTominay was taken out by Manuel Locatelli.
Atalanta additionally keep seven factors off the tempo in third though Mateo Retegui’s brace fired them to a 2-1 win at Como earlier on Saturday.
– Retegui on the double –
Italy striker Retegui pounced within the 56th and seventieth minutes at a soaking Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia to take his league tally to 16 objectives and provides third-placed Atalanta their first win in Italy’s high flight in 2025.
The 25-year-old has scored 5 instances in 4 video games in all competitions since coming back from a hamstring damage earlier this month, and his sizzling type is nice information for Atalanta forward of their journey to Barcelona.
Atalanta journey to Catalonia gunning for a spot within the high eight of the Champions League and computerized qualification for the final 16, after thumping Sturm Graz on Tuesday.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s facet needed to battle to victory at Como who deservedly led on the break by Nico Paz’s incredible first-time strike however stay three factors above the relegation zone in thirteenth place.
“It isn’t straightforward to play so many matches so shut collectively… we have been gradual within the first half however we have been significantly better after half-time,” mentioned Gasperini to DAZN.
Como will discover it arduous to select up factors between now and March. Their subsequent 5 fixtures are towards Bologna, Juventus, Fiorentina, Napoli and Roma.
“You should keep in mind that we’re Como, we’re a newly-promoted group however we’re giving quite a lot of large groups arduous video games,” mentioned cach Cesc Fabregas.
The away facet additionally had strikes from Ademola Lookman and Charles De Ketelaere dominated out for offside and handball, which made for a nervy remaining jiffy as Como pushed unsuccessfully for a leveller.
td/nf/pb
