SSC Napoli on Monday maintained their lead at the top of Serie A with a 3-2 win over promoted Pisa SC, which continued the champions’ perfect start to their domestic campaign.
Lorenzo Lucca’s first goal for his new club, thumped home in the 82nd minute, ended up being the winning goal in a narrow win for Napoli, who have 12 points from four league matches.
That put Napoli two points ahead of second-placed Juventus following their great rivals’ draw at Hellas Verona on Saturday, and three ahead of AS Roma and AC Milan who complete the top four.
Photo: EPA
Napoli head to the San Siro at the weekend to take on Milan, who have a Coppa Italia match against US Lecce last night.
“Obviously, we’re happy for four wins out of four in a league where there are six or seven teams at a really good level,” Napoli head coach Antonio Conte told Sky. “We’ve got a lot of new players who have come here and have the scudetto [for winning last season’s title] on their shirt, and that carries pressure.”
Conte has a reputation for struggling with the rhythm of playing European and domestic soccer, and it was an underwhelming performance from Napoli in the wake of Thursday last week’s 2-0 defeat at Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League.
“The teams that play European football every year are settled in, we’re not. That’s why playing every three days can create physical and mental stress,” Conte said. “We need to have patience.”
Lucca’s late strike saved Conte’s team from a draw which looked on the cards when M’Bala Nzola calmly leveled the scores from the penalty spot in the 60 minute.
Nzola’s strike canceled out Billy Gilmour’s first ever goal in professional club soccer, deflected home in the 39th minute at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Leonardo Spinazzola scored his first goal since February out of nowhere in the 73rd minute with a long-range drive and then Lucca lashed home to give Napoli the points.
Lucca’s strike against his former club turned out to be the key as Lorran tapped home for Pisa in the 90th minute after Giovanni di Lorenzo gave the ball away cheaply in his own penalty area.
That capped a poor weak for Di Lorenzo, who was also sent off at City for chopping down Erling Haaland.
Head coach Alberto Gilardino’s Pisa could not snatch a late draw and remain second from bottom with just a single point.
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