Giacomo Raspadori’s late goal earned a Napoli a second-straight Serie A win for the first time since September as they recorded a 2-1 victory over Juventus, who lost further ground on the league leaders as a result.
A frantic first-half was on show for supporters inside the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium but Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s strike three minutes before the break put Napoli a goal up at half-time.
Excitement levels in the second period did not drop and Juventus thought they would take a share of the spoils when Federico Chiesa’s beauty levelled things up.
However, Giacomo Raspadori’s rebound from Victor Osimhen’s missed penalty gave Napoli a second win on the bounce, while – as a result – Juventus dropped further behind leaders Inter Milan.
The visitors were first to test the waters and Dusan Vlahovic aimed and fired just wide of the far post in the 11th minute.
Napoli came closest to opening the scoring when Frank Anguissa was denied by Wojciech Szczesny from six yards and Matteo Politano’s follow up was also kept out by the Poland goalkeeper.
The game was already teeing up to be an end-to-end thriller, this time Chiesa picked out Samuel Iling-Junior but his first-time effort went marginally wide.
Juventus came within inches of breaking the deadlock in the 34th minute when Vlahovic latched onto Chiesa’s through ball, he dinked it over the onrushing Alex Meret and onto the post.
Back came Napoli and Mathias Olivera’s goalbound header was cleared off the line by Alex Sandro with the score somehow still at 0-0.
Three minutes before the break, Napoli had a breakthrough. Moments after Anguissa had a shot blocked, a defensive header fell into the path of Kvaratskhelia, who proved too powerful for Szczesny and volleyed the ball into the bottom corner.
Juventus could have had an equaliser almost straight away after Daniele Rugani capitalised on some loose possession in the home defence, the ball fell kindly to Vlahovic but he could not take advantage and skied his effort over the crossbar.
Chances continued to come for Serbia international Vlahovic but he failed to find the back of the net, this time he broke the line but tamely hit his shot into the firm grasp of Meret.
Juventus went in search of an equaliser, Southampton loanee Carlos Alcaraz decided to have a crack this time but his shot deflected kindly for Meret.
The visitors found an equaliser in the 82nd minute when Chiesa found space just inside the box and cracked a daisycutter into the bottom-left corner to level things up at one apiece.
Napoli were given the chance to retake the lead after Osimhen was brought down inside the box by Joseph Nonge, with referee Maurizio Mariani awarding a penalty following a VAR check.
From the resulting spot-kick, Osimhen saw his strike saved by Szczesny but Raspadori was on hand to smash home his rebound via the post to save the blushes of the Nigeria striker.
Juventus missed a golden opportunity to snatch an equaliser at the death when Chiesa’s driven cross was diverted over the crossbar by Rugani with the goal at his mercy.
Napoli held on for maximum points to move up to seventh and leave their second-placed opponents 12 points off the lead.
Under-fire Stefano Pioli respects Milan fan protests
Stefano Pioli said he respects the opinions of Milan's supporters after thousands of fans carried out a silent protest during Sunday's 3-3 Serie A draw against Genoa at San Siro.
With Milan enduring a second straight trophyless season, trailing champions Inter by 18 points, Pioli has come under pressure amid suggestions the Rossoneri have held talks with former Spain and Real Madrid boss Julen Lopetegui.
Irritated fans unfurled banners demanding improvements to the team during Sunday's match, while the club's ultras stayed silent in protest throughout the game.
Fans then left behind a banner which read "the sound of silence" as they filed out en masse from the Curva Sud shortly after Olivier Giroud had put Milan 3-2 ahead in the 75th minute.
By the time Genoa pulled level late in the match, thanks to an own goal by Malick Thiaw, the stand was completely empty.
"The fans have chosen this type of protest and we just need to respect them," Pioli, whose side have already secured their spot in next season's Champions League, said.
"Our fans have been an added value in recent years. They will have their reasons if they chose this protest."
Sunday's draw also means Milan are winless in their last four league matches.
"The start was poor. We didn't have the proper concentration and unity in the opening 20 minutes and conceded an early opener," Pioli said.
"Then, we created many opportunities but also made many errors. It's a shame we didn't win because it would have been important for the table."
Postecoglou: Spurs have a confidence problem to overcome
Ange Postecoglou says that Tottenham need to "overcome" their low confidence after suffering a 4-2 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
Spurs slipped to their fourth consecutive Premier League defeat, being left to bemoan their slow start as they found themselves 4-0 down by the hour mark thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah, Andrew Robertson, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott.
Richarlison came off the bench to salvage some pride for Spurs, scoring one before setting up Son Heung-min for a goal on his 300th Premier League appearance.
Spurs had the opportunity to cut the gap to the top four after Aston Villa’s defeat to Brighton, but they remain seven points off a Champions League spot.
Postecoglou’s side still have a game in hand over the Villans, though he was sure that Spurs would be able to put their recent poor run behind them.
Asked if Spurs had a confidence problem, Postecoglou told Sky Sports: "Maybe in the front third there is.
"It probably is a bit of a lack of confidence, but again, that's something the guys have to work through.
"You have to find a way to overcome that because, ultimately, if you don't put pressure on the opposition in the front third after you've worked your way up there, they're going to get comfortable with their position."
Spurs have won just one of their last nine Premier League away games, failing to win any of the last five.
Despite that run extending at Anfield, Postecoglou highlighted what he thought was an improvement on their recent performances.
He continued: "Obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us but at least we were more like ourselves today in terms of our football.
"Our last two away games at Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results which weren't great either, we just didn't try and play our football.
"I thought today, even in the first half, some of our football, our pressing was back to where it should be."
Roma 1-1 Juventus: Juve miss chance to close gap to second after draw with Roma
Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw at Roma on Sunday, missing the chance to close in on Milan in second place in Serie A.
Roma took the lead after 15 minutes when Romelu Lukaku found himself in the perfect position to tap in the rebound from a Bryan Cristante shot.
Bremer levelled with a header for Juventus just after the half-hour mark when Federico Chiesa picked him out inside the box from a corner.
Both sides had chances to find a winner in the final minutes, with Roma keeper Mile Svilar making a fingertip save to push Manuel Locatelli's volley over the bar.
Third-placed Juventus have 66 points, five fewer than Milan, who drew 3-3 with Genoa earlier on Sunday. Roma are fifth with 60 points.
Data Debrief: Leading from the back
Since scoring his first Serie A goal in the 2019-20 season, Bremer is the defender with the most headed goals in the Big-5 European leagues, netting 13 in total. Each of his last seven goals have been headers.
His goal was enough to earn Juventus a point today, but it means that they have drawn each of their last four in the competition - a first since February-March 2012 under Antonio Conte.
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