Napoli could be one week away from clinching the Serie A title after a stoppage-time winner from Giacomo Raspadori earned a 1-0 win away to Juventus that extended their lead at the top of the standings to 17 points.
The Partenopei profited on a shock 1-0 defeat for nearest rivals Lazio against Torino by picking up three precious points against their fiercest rivals, who now find themselves two points off second after their 15-point penalty was wiped out earlier in the week.
The result means that if Napoli beat Salernitana at home next Saturday and Lazio fail to win away to Inter the following day, the Partenopei will end a 33-year long wait for their third Scudetto.
Both sides struggled to create clear openings in the first half but Serie A top scorer Victor Osimhen came to life after the break, clipping the post and squandering a couple of big chances, before Angel Di Maria and Dusan Vlahovic had goals chalked off for Juve late on.
Raspadori was left all alone to volley home the winner in the 93rd minute to send Luciano Spalletti’s side up to 78 points and end a three-match winless run.
The two sides came into the game in contrasting moods; Juventus had their 15-point deduction for financial wrongdoing overturned and reached the Europa League semi-finals during the week, while Napoli’s Champions League hopes were ended by AC Milan.
The league leaders were unusually blunt in a goalless draw against Verona last weekend, and their problems continued in a sluggish first half where they failed to get a shot on target for a second consecutive Serie A game for the first time since 2011.
Juventus managed to test Alex Meret with efforts from Juan Cuadrado and Arkadiusz Milik, while Federico Gatti played a risky game when he threw an arm out at Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and left the Napoli winger on the floor clutching his head, but the referee didn’t intervene.
The visitors upped their intensity after the break and finally managed to sting the palms of Wojciech Szczesny as Kvaratskhelia and Giovanni Di Lorenzo threatened early in the second half before Osimhen skimmed the woodwork and fired over from a good position.
Substitute Di Maria thought he had made a decisive contribution late on when he finished off a quick counter-attack, but VAR called the referee over for a second look and it was ruled out for a foul in the build-up. Vlahovic then came off the bench and immediately scored, but the ball was clearly out of play when Federico Chiesa provided the assist.
Two Napoli replacements combined to make the late breakthrough, Eljif Elmas picking out the unmarked Raspadori at the back post for a powerful volleyed finish.
