Napoli secured a deserved 2-1 victory over Fiorentina at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Sunday, returning to second place in Serie A and closing the gap to leaders Inter Milan to one point. The win ends a five-game winless streak for Antonio Conte’s side.
Napoli, responding to pre-match calls from fans for “Anema e Core” (“Heart and Soul”), displayed a dominant first-half performance. They peppered the Fiorentina area with crosses and passes aimed at Romelu Lukaku.
Fiorentina goalkeeper David de Gea initially kept Napoli at bay, saving a close-range shot from Giacomo Raspadori. However, Lukaku opened the scoring in the 26th minute. De Gea failed to hold onto a long-range shot from former Manchester United teammate Scott McTominay, and Lukaku capitalized, converting from just outside the six-yard box.
De Gea then parried another Raspadori effort, while Fiorentina’s Moise Kean headed over from a corner during a rare attacking foray. Napoli continued to press, with Giovanni Di Lorenzo striking the crossbar and De Gea saving with his foot from Leonardo Spinazzola.
The second half began at a slower pace, but Raspadori again tested De Gea. In the 60th minute, Raspadori doubled Napoli’s lead. Lukaku provided a perfectly weighted through ball, and Raspadori controlled it on the turn before driving a low shot into the far corner.
Fiorentina responded six minutes later. Moise Kean’s backheeled pass found Albert Gudmundsson, who drilled a shot into the bottom corner.
Napoli had a late chance to seal the victory, but Giovanni Simeone scuffed his shot when one-on-one with De Gea.
The win moves Napoli to 60 points, one behind Inter, who beat Monza 3-2 on Saturday. Fiorentina remain in seventh place with 45 points. The match highlighted Napoli’s attacking threat, particularly through Lukaku and Raspadori, and their resilience in securing a vital win after a difficult run of form.
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