Di Lorenzo fires Napoli past Lecce and five points clear

Captain Di Lorenzo bundled home the only goal of a scrappy game in Naples after Scott McTominay's header from a corner was saved by Lecce goalkeeper Wladimiro Falcone. The Italy full-back's third goal of the season for Napoli came after he was denied in the first half when his close-range finish was rightly ruled out for offside.

Antonio Conte's side created little else against spirited Lecce, who remain second from bottom on five points after a fourth straight defeat, as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Matteo Politano started on the bench.

Romelu Lukaku fluffed Napoli's best chance of the match when he skied over from inside the six-yard box nine minutes after half-time, and the hosts' were panicky in the final minutes as Lecce pushed for a leveller.

Regardless Napoli are comfortably ahead of second-placed Inter Milan, who host Juventus late on Sunday in the biggest match to date of their league title defence. On Tuesday, Napoli travel to the San Siro to face AC Milan, who sit fifth and will not play this weekend after Saturday's match at Bologna was postponed due to torrential rain and flooding.

Bologna and its surrounding areas are still reeling from a massive downpour over last weekend which claimed the life of a 20-year-old man. Swathes of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy, much of which is fertile agricultural flatland, were left underwater following a second round of extreme weather in a matter of weeks.

On Friday, Serie A president Lorenzo Casini said the match would likely be played in February due to the two clubs' Champions League commitments and Milan's involvement in the four-team Italian Super Cup which will be played in Saudi Arabia in early January.

 

October 26, 2024