LECCE: Napoli took another step closer to ending their 33-year wait to win the Serie A title after they came away from Lecce with a 2-1 win on Friday thanks to a bizarre own goal from Lecce defender Antonino Gallo, while AC Milan were held to a goalless draw by Empoli.

Luciano Spalletti’s side extended their lead at the top of the table to 19 points over second-placed Lazio.

Napoli, whose shock 4-0 loss to AC Milan on Sunday was only their third league defeat of the season, are within touching distance of winning the Serie A title for the first time since 1990 with nine games left to play.

Napoli opened the scoring in the 18th minute when an unmarked Giovanni Di Lorenzo headed home Kim Min-jae’s cross. Lecce equalised seven minutes into the second half after Federico Di Francesco pounced on a rebound inside the box and sent the ball into the bottom corner.

Lecce’s momentum disappeared in the 64th minute when Gallo chested the ball back to keeper Wladimiro Falcone, who saw it slip between his gloves and into the net.

Napoli were without Serie A top scorer Victor Osimhen, who is still recovering from a thigh strain, and Spalletti admitted the team were hampered by the Nigerian’s absence.

“It does become difficult without him, because he has this way of running into space, this physicality, he can draw everyone to him and therefore create the space for his team-mates.”

Nigeria forward Osimhen might be back for Wednesday’s first leg of the all-Italian Champions League quarter-final with third-placed Milan.

“Osimhen wants to play every game, but there are situations that need to be evaluated carefully. He really did run the risk of hurting himself badly and being ruled out for the rest of the season, so the medics were right to make him take some time out.”

The match concluded another miserable week for Lecce, who have now suffered six straight defeats in Serie A and are 16th, eight points above the relegation zone.

Meanwhile, Milan flopped at the San Siro as Stefano Pioli’s much-changed side failed to break down defensive Empoli.

The hosts thought they had claimed the points in the final moments when substitute Olivier Giroud netted but his strike was rightly ruled out for handball after he celebrated.

That was the second time supporters were ruing VAR officials after Milan were also denied a penalty on the hour after Tyronne Ebuehi had initially been penalised for handball.

Empoli held out for a draw which meant Milan failed to fully capitalise on another bad evening for Romelu Lukaku in rivals Inter Milan’s 1-1 draw at Salernitana.

Antonio Candreva’s miscued cross in the final minute moved Salernitana 10 points above the relegation zone and left Inter at risk of being knocked out of the Champions League positions.

Wasteful Inter would have been out of sight before old boy Candreva’s fortuitous strike had they made the most of their opportunities after Robin Gosens netted their first goal from open play in a month in the sixth minute, with Lukaku the worst culprit in Salerno.

Lukaku headed a simple opportunity straight at Guillermo Ochoa in the first half. And he somehow managed to scoop a diving header onto the bar from inside the six-yard box in the 65th minute before the superb Ochoa brilliantly kept out Stefan De Vrij on the rebound.

Fourth-placed Inter are just one point ahead of Roma, who are at Torino on Sunday, while sixth-placed Atalanta can also move above Inter on goal difference if they beat Bologna.

Published in Dawn, April 9th, 2023