Champions Napoli strike late to earn point from Serie A leaders Inter
Both teams exited the UEFA Champions League in midweek, but this contest started brightly enough without too many clear-cut chances. Inter did enjoy the best of the territory in the first half though, with Juan Jesus standing out in the Napoli backline as he combined with Mathias Olivera to thwart Marcus Thuram early on before putting in a timely tackle on Lautaro Martinez to prevent him from cleanly connecting with Federico Dimarco’s menacing cross.
The Brazilian then cut out another Dimarco ball not long afterwards, but Thuram regained possession for the hosts and found Matteo Darmian, whose header across goal was superbly saved by Alex Meret, with the visiting goalkeeper springing to his feet to keep out Lautaro’s follow-up.
Darmian did find the net on 43 minutes however, as a move upfield was worked wide to the left, allowing Alessandro Bastoni to superbly square for the former Manchester United defender to sweep home, aided by a nick off Olivera.
Just shy of the interval, Hakan Calhanoglu vitally dispossessed Stanislav Lobotka as the midfielder looked to pull the trigger, but Napoli emerged for the second period still seeking their first effort on target of the match and looking to extend their five-game unbeaten league run (W2, D3) under Calzona, as Victor Osimhen, who suffered a muscle injury at Barcelona on Tuesday, continued to watch on from the bench.
It was Inter who carved out the first opportunity after the restart however as Meret repelled a Lautaro strike and then tipped behind Dimarco’s deflected drive, while Thuram wasted two close-range chances.
Another excellent intervention from Jesus stopped Lautaro from potentially making it 2-0 and the ex-Inter centre-back duly haunted his old club on 81 minutes, nodding in at the back post unmarked after Matteo Politano’s corner was inadvertently flicked on by Bastoni into his path.
Inter pushed for a late winner, but to no avail, and host Empoli on Easter Monday straight after the international break, while Napoli welcome Atalanta to Stadio Diego Armando Maradona two days earlier having put an end to a sequence of five successive head-to-head away losses.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Juan Jesus (Napoli)
