Napoli’s First Loss Of The Season Enlivens Serie A Title Race

As Serie A resumed action on Wednesday, the spotlight was on the evening clash between Inter Milan and league leaders Napoli at the iconic San Siro stadium.

Inter Milan were under strong pressure entering this game, as a victory was necessary to keep their Scudetto dreams alive. Napoli, in turn, had the incredible chance to create a 14-point gap over one of the fiercest title contenders.

In what was inevitably a hard-fought game, a header by evergreen center-forward Edin Dzeko was enough to seal the win for Inter Milan, who barely conceded any chances to the opponent. The Nerazzurri have now reduced their deficit from the table-toppers to eight points.

The Partenopei suffered the first loss of their 2022/23 Serie A campaign, thus forgoing the status of being the only undefeated side remaining in Europe’s top-5 soccer leagues.

While one loss cannot overshadow all the good things done by Luciano Spalletti’s men this season, it certainly injects new life into the Scudetto race, especially because all other title challengers managed to collect the maximum reward during matchday 16.

Earlier in the day, AC Milan traveled to Salerno, where they secured the three points thanks to a 2-1 victory in a sold-out Stadio Arechi. In the wake of Napoli’s defeat, the Rossoneri are now five points shy of the top.

Rafael Leao, one of the hottest names in European soccer’s transfer market scene, broke the stalemate with the seventh goal of his 2022/23 Serie A campaign, once again showcasing blistering pace on the dribble.

The Portugal international is at the center of transfer rumors because he has not yet extended the terms of his AC Milan contract, which is set to expire in June 2024. According to Italian media, Leao’s agent is asking for a €7 million ($7.4m) base salary, which would represent a fivefold increase to the size of his current paycheck.

In the match between Cremonese and Juventus, the newly-promoted side held back the Bianconeri until stoppage time, when a curled free kick by Arkadiusz Milik allowed Juventus to celebrate the late win.

Despite enduring very turbulent times, Juventus have managed to keep focused in Serie A, recording seven wins in a row and boasting the best defense in the league with only seven goals conceded in 16 fixtures.

Meanwhile, AS Roma, the club owned by U.S. businessman Dan Friedkin, took care of business with a 1-0 home win over Bologna and are now leveled in points with their city rivals and arch enemies Lazio.

The two Rome-based clubs are currently neck and neck for a UEFA Europa League place, which is granted to the Serie A team that clinches the fifth position at the end of the season.

The Serie A title race is poised to get even more electrifying this month, as the January schedule features some exciting head-to-head contests.

On Sunday, AC Milan are hosting AS Roma, while the following week, frontrunners Napoli are traveling to Turin to face third-placed Juventus in a clash that will juxtapose the league’s most prolific attack with the league’s most solid defense.