Napoli draws with Genoa in Serie A and gives Internazionale hope
Neapolitan side draw 2-2 with Genoa, maintaining fragile lead in national tournament
With just two rounds left until the end of the Italian Championship , the leader Napoli found themselves in trouble at home this Sunday, the 11th. After leading the scoreboard twice, the team from Naples conceded a draw to Genoa , 2-2, after conceding a goal in the final stretch of the match played at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium, in the 36th round.
The result left Napoli just one point ahead in the standings: 78 to 77 over Inter Milan , who earlier beat Torino 2-0 away from home. The Naples side will face Parma away and Cagliari at home on the next two Sundays. Inter will visit Lazio and then host Como on the next two Sundays.
The Milan team, however, divides its attention between the Champions League. After eliminating Barcelona in the middle of the week , Internazionale is now looking towards the grand final of the continental tournament, against Paris Saint-Germain , on the 31st of this month.
With only themselves to take the Italian title, Napoli started off at a strong pace in front of their home fans. They took control of the action in the first few minutes and opened the scoring in the 14th minute, confirming their good form in the match. In the move, McTominay made a great pass to Lukaku, who burst into the box and beat goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist with a shot.
The game seemed to be going as expected by the fans. However, on the other side, Genoa were creating danger, with the ball hitting the crossbar. Risk also loomed in the Napoli penalty area with a series of crosses. One of them found full-back Ahanor at the far post in the 32nd minute. He headed the ball firmly and saw it hit the foot of the post, bounce off goalkeeper Meret’s leg and go in. The referee called an own goal.
The draw did not discourage the hosts, who returned with the same attacking approach for the second half. On a “waiter” day, McTominay passed to Raspadori, who invaded the area from the left and kicked the ball to put Napoli back in the lead on the scoreboard, in the 17th minute.
The fans were already looking forward to three points on the board when Genoa once again created danger with crosses. At 38 minutes, the strategy paid off again and around 50 thousand fans fell silent at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium. Vásquez headed the ball firmly into the net, after another cross into the area, and decreed the tie on the scoreboard.
