Giacomo Raspadori’s late goal earned a Napoli a second-straight Serie A win for the first time since September as they recorded a 2-1 victory over Juventus, who lost further ground on the league leaders as a result.

A frantic first-half was on show for supporters inside the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium but Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s strike three minutes before the break put Napoli a goal up at half-time.

Excitement levels in the second period did not drop and Juventus thought they would take a share of the spoils when Federico Chiesa’s beauty levelled things up.

However, Giacomo Raspadori’s rebound from Victor Osimhen’s missed penalty gave Napoli a second win on the bounce, while – as a result – Juventus dropped further behind leaders Inter Milan.

The visitors were first to test the waters and Dusan Vlahovic aimed and fired just wide of the far post in the 11th minute.

Napoli came closest to opening the scoring when Frank Anguissa was denied by Wojciech Szczesny from six yards and Matteo Politano’s follow up was also kept out by the Poland goalkeeper.

The game was already teeing up to be an end-to-end thriller, this time Chiesa picked out Samuel Iling-Junior but his first-time effort went marginally wide.

Juventus came within inches of breaking the deadlock in the 34th minute when Vlahovic latched onto Chiesa’s through ball, he dinked it over the onrushing Alex Meret and onto the post.

Back came Napoli and Mathias Olivera’s goalbound header was cleared off the line by Alex Sandro with the score somehow still at 0-0.

Three minutes before the break, Napoli had a breakthrough. Moments after Anguissa had a shot blocked, a defensive header fell into the path of Kvaratskhelia, who proved too powerful for Szczesny and volleyed the ball into the bottom corner.

Juventus could have had an equaliser almost straight away after Daniele Rugani capitalised on some loose possession in the home defence, the ball fell kindly to Vlahovic but he could not take advantage and skied his effort over the crossbar.

Chances continued to come for Serbia international Vlahovic but he failed to find the back of the net, this time he broke the line but tamely hit his shot into the firm grasp of Meret.

Juventus went in search of an equaliser, Southampton loanee Carlos Alcaraz decided to have a crack this time but his shot deflected kindly for Meret.

The visitors found an equaliser in the 82nd minute when Chiesa found space just inside the box and cracked a daisycutter into the bottom-left corner to level things up at one apiece.

Napoli were given the chance to retake the lead after Osimhen was brought down inside the box by Joseph Nonge, with referee Maurizio Mariani awarding a penalty following a VAR check.

From the resulting spot-kick, Osimhen saw his strike saved by Szczesny but Raspadori was on hand to smash home his rebound via the post to save the blushes of the Nigeria striker.

Juventus missed a golden opportunity to snatch an equaliser at the death when Chiesa’s driven cross was diverted over the crossbar by Rugani with the goal at his mercy.

Napoli held on for maximum points to move up to seventh and leave their second-placed opponents 12 points off the lead.

Massimiliano Allegri is not fooled by Napoli’s position in the Serie A table as Juventus look to end their long hoodoo at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

Heading into Sunday’s clash in Naples the reigning champions are only eighth, with visitors Juve 17 points better off and pushing Inter Milan for top spot.

However, the Bianconeri have not taken three points from this away fixture since March 2019 and head coach Allegri knows Francesco Calzona’s men can be very dangerous on home turf.

“Juventus haven’t won in Naples for five years, it won’t be easy,” Allegri said at his Saturday press conference. “It will be a difficult match as they’re a good team and it’s strange to see them in that position in the table.

“We know that there are endless challenges at Napoli; we need to limit their strengths and try to be proactive when we have the ball.

“They’ve just won a tough match against Sassuolo, and with (Victor) Osimhen returning they’ve found their bite again.

“They’ve had their problems this year but the quality of their players has not changed.”

Juve have problems of their own. Their tense win against Frosinone last weekend was a first victory in five attempts and Allegri wants his men to come flying out of the traps in March.

“We’ve been through a difficult period, it wasn’t a good February. We must ensure that March is better than last month.

“Against Frosinone we conceded two avoidable goals and we must do better as a team when defending.

“Now the most beautiful but also more complicated period of the season begins; we must stay focused and know that picking up points becomes more difficult from now.

“Last year we came third, this year if we came second it would be a good result.”

Federico Chiesa and Danilo should be in contention to feature for Juve in Naples while Moise Kean and Mattia Perin will need longer to recover from injuries and Adrien Rabiot and Weston McKennie have outside chances to be involved.

It may not all be doom and gloom for Napoli, for whom Jens Cajuste and Cyril Ngonge are injury doubts, as they ran riot to win 6-1 at Sassuolo last weekend.

Matteo Politano feels the appointment of Calzona as Walter Mazzarri’s replacement on February 19 could be the catalyst for a late-season resurgence.

The Italy midfielder told sscnapoli.it: “He is giving us a lot of motivation but keeping us calm, too.

“Some of us have known him for years, we know how he works and we are totally on board with following his ideas.”

Victor Osimhen rescued Napoli a 1-1 home draw against Barcelona in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie in his first appearance for the Italian club since December.

Osimhen, who had served a ban in Napoli’s previous game after returning from Africa Cup of Nations duty for runners-up Nigeria, stole clear in the penalty area with 15 minutes remaining to fire home an equaliser.

Barcelona had taken a deserved lead on the hour-mark through Robert Lewandowski’s 93rd Champions League goal.

It was Napoli’s first game since they sacked head coach Walter Mazzarri after three months in charge and replaced him with Slovakian Francesco Calzona.

Porto winger Galeno’s stunning stoppage-time winner clinched his side a 1-0 win against Arsenal in the first leg of their tie.

Arsenal looked set to return to London all-square after a cagey tactical battle at Estadio do Dragao, but Brazilian Galeno crashed home a shot from outside the box in the fourth minute of added time.

The Gunners, bidding to reach the tournament’s last eight for the first time since 2010, created few chances, while Galeno struck a post with a close-range effort in the first half.

Kai Havertz had Arsenal’s best two chances late in the first half, firing off target from six yards before heading Bukayo Saka’s corner just wide.

The two sides will meet in the return leg at the Emirates Stadium on March 12.

Victor Osimhen snatched an unlikely 1-1 draw for Napoli in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Barcelona.

The Nigeria striker cancelled out a trademark Robert Lewandowski strike as a low-quality tie ended all square.

The champions of Italy met the champions of Spain in what should have been the glamour tie of the round at Napoli’s Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

The Argentinian’s name is synonymous with glory days at both clubs but now both are struggling to recapture last season’s title-winning successes.

Napoli, a lowly ninth in Serie A, sacked Walter Mazzarri on Monday with Francesco Calzona replacing him as their third manager of the season.

The Slovakia coach, appointed on an interim basis, had just 48 hours to try to inject some life into their dismal campaign.

Meanwhile, Barca boss Xavi – whose side lie eight points behind rivals Real Madrid in La Liga – announced last month he would be leaving at the end of the campaign.

Two sides bereft of confidence locked horns with Barca, without Gavi, Ferran Torres, Marcos Alonso and Sergi Roberto through injury, dominating the first half but lacking any real goal threat.

Lamine Yamal, their 16-year-old sensation, brought the first save from Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret with a fierce drive from the edge of the area.

Lewandowski’s first chance came from Ilkay Gundogan’s through-ball but his flicked finish was blocked by Meret.

The Napoli defence then opened up invitingly for Gundogan, whose dipping effort was also beaten away by Meret.

For Napoli, Osimhen was playing his first match since before Christmas but he looked isolated up front as the hosts finished the first half without a single effort on goal.

That sorry stat at least changed at the start of the second half when Matteo Politano planted an early header wide.

Gundogan should have done better with Yamal’s cut-back to the edge of the box but his side-footed effort was easily dealt with by Meret.

But Lewandowski broke the deadlock on the hour when Pedri played the ball into his feet.

Lewandowski expertly turned and fired low between two defenders and beyond the dive of Meret.

It was the Poland international’s 93rd Champions League goal, although he had not scored in his last four appearances in the competition.

But Barca had only kept one clean sheet in their previous nine matches and a blunt Napoli attack finally woke up in the 75th minute.

Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa drove the ball forward and Osimhen rolled Inigo Martinez, who claimed he was fouled, before tucking the ball past Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Both sides could have grabbed a winner but Napoli substitute Giovanni Simeone blazed over before Gundogan fired inches wide in stoppage time.

Ilkay Gundogan believes Barcelona face a “harder” test against Napoli following the Italian club’s change of manager.

The Serie A champions sacked Walter Mazzarri on Monday and immediately brought in former coach Francesco Calzona until the end of the season.

His debut in the dugout comes at home to Barcelona in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 clash on Wednesday night.

Speaking to La Vanguardia, Gundogan said: “This is what the Champions League is all about, making big demands.

“I love this kind of pressure. Every game starts from zero. The fact they have just changed managers won’t make it any easier for us. If anything, it makes it even harder.

“There are other teams in the competition with more of a chance and better experience, but if we can reach the quarter finals, we are entering special territory. I am a realist, but I also know it’s difficult for everybody.”

Barcelona will see their boss Xavi leave the club at the end of the season.

The 44-year-old confirmed the news last month, with Barca falling behind rivals Real Madrid and Girona at the top of the LaLiga table.

Gundogan, who joined the club from Manchester City last summer after completing the treble, admitted he “didn’t expect” Xavi to leave.

He said: “Xavi played a huge role in me coming to Barcelona. If our conversations had gone another way, I wouldn’t be here.

“He made the difference and I’m grateful for that. I didn’t expect him to announce he was leaving at the end of the season, but I respect his decision.

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“He should get a lot of credit. He thinks about his family, the players and the club before himself. Xavi loves Barca.”

Despite their struggles in the league, Xavi steered Barcelona to top spot in Champions League Group H.

Napoli finished second to Madrid in Group C and are also having a far from happy time of things domestically.

They lie ninth in Serie A and have won just twice in their last eight league games.

Barcelona have Joao Felix and Sergi Roberto fit again after spells on the sidelines.

Napoli have dismissed Walter Mazzarri and made former coach Francesco Calzona their third boss of the season.

Calzona is currently Slovakia manager and will combine the role alongside taking charge of the current Serie A champions until the end of the season.

Mazzarri returned to Naples in November after Rudi Garcia was sacked after five months, but ex-Watford chief Mazzarri has now left his post after eight defeats in 17 matches.

“I thank Walter Mazzarri, a friend of the De Laurentiis family and of Napoli, for supporting the team in a complex moment,” Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

“(He) will remain in the hearts of Neapolitans and our family.

“Welcome back to Francesco Calzona, who has already worked with us with both (Maurizio) Sarri and (Luciano) Spalletti.”

Calzona spent three years at Napoli working under Sarri before a solitary campaign as part of Spalletti’s staff for the 2021-22 season.

The 55-year-old left the Serie A outfit that summer and took over as manager of Slovakia, leading them to Euro 2024 qualification in November, which resulted in him signing new terms with the nation last week.

No details of Calzona’s contract were revealed by Napoli, but the Slovak Football Association confirmed it was a short-term deal and he will lead the Naples club for the first time against Barcelona on Wednesday.

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“It was only on Sunday, February 18 that an official request came from SSC Napoli that Francesco Calzona could perform the function of head coach of the Slovak national football team at the same time as the head coach of the club,” a statement from the Slovak Football Association read.

“The Slovak Football Association is aware that this is a non-standard decision that may cause concern among the public.

“However, it also understands the exceptional relationship of F. Calzona to the club where he worked for a long time and wants to help him in the current difficult situation.

“Coach F. Calzona has repeatedly declared that the main priority of his activity remains the Slovak national football team and its preparation for the final tournament EURO 2024.”

Cyril Ngonge scored a last-gasp equaliser as Napoli’s meek defence of their Serie A title continued with a home draw against Genoa.

A first league crown in 23 years last season already seems a distant memory but Walter Mazzarri will take some solace in seeing his side rescue a 1-1 draw late on after Morten Frendrup had put the visitors ahead.

The result means Napoli sit ninth in Serie A – six points off the top four – as, for the second time this season, they came from behind to draw with Genoa.

With talismanic striker Victor Osimhen watching from the stands after returning from the Africa Cup of Nations, Napoli started well.

Matteo Politano and Giovanni Simeone were lively, the latter heading a decent chance wide at the midway point of the first half.

Alex Meret made a good save to keep out a Mateo Retegui header with the visitors starting to come into the game.

The sides went in level at the interval but Genoa would break the deadlock soon after the restart.

A ball into Retegui on the penalty spot was cleared to the edge of the Napoli box, where Danish midfielder Frendrup finished with aplomb.

Ngonge had a sight of goal as Napoli chased a leveller, while a Frank Anguissa header came close to extending the Genoa advantage.

With time running out for Mazzarri’s side, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia almost equalised with three minutes to go but Josep Martinez kept out his effort.

There was nothing the Spain goalkeeper could do, though, soon after as Napoli finally worked a way through.

A deep cross was headed down by captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo and Ngonge was on hand to fire home his first Napoli goal since joining from Hellas Verona in January – salvaging a point for the hosts.

AC Milan’s unbeaten start to the year in Serie A continued with a 1-0 victory over Napoli at the San Siro.

Scudetto champions Napoli have failed to match the form which saw them win the title last season and were beaten by Theo Hernandez’s first-half strike.

The France international latched onto Rafael Leao’s through ball and fired into the bottom corner to secure Milan a sixth win in seven league games.

Fiorentina snapped a three-game winless run with a crushing 5-1 victory over Frosinone.

The hosts were out of sight by half-time through goals from Andrea Belotti, Jonathan Ikone and Lucas Martinez.

Nicolas Gonzalez made it four eight minutes into the second half and Antonin Barak completed the rout after Luca Mazzitelli’s brilliant free-kick had pulled one back for Frosinone.

Bologna’s quest for European football continued in style with an emphatic 4-0 victory over Lecce.

Sam Beukema put the hosts 1-0 up before Riccardo Orsolini bagged a brace and Jens Odgaard added a fourth with eight minutes to go to give Bologna back-to-back wins.

Atalanta earned a fourth consecutive Serie A win with a 4-1 triumph over Genoa.

Charles De Ketelaere opened the scoring in the 22nd minute but Ruslan Malinovskyi levelled things up in the second half.

However, Genoa were not level for long as Teun Koopmeiners fired Atalanta back in front and stoppage-time goals from Davide Zappacosta and El Bilal Toure made it 4-1.

Hellas Verona picked up a vital point in their fight for survival with a goalless draw at Monza.

In LaLiga, Barcelona slipped 10 points behind leaders Real Madrid after twice coming from behind to draw 3-3 with Granada.

Lamine Yamal’s opener was cancelled out by Ricard Sanchez two minutes before the break and Granada took the lead in the second half when on-loan Manchester United midfielder Facundo Pellistri bundled into an empty net at the back post.

Robert Lewandowski crashed in his 15th goal of the campaign on the hour but Granada regained the lead three minutes later, only for 16-year-old Yamal to rescue a point for Barcelona with 10 minutes to go.

Sevilla pulled six points clear of the relegation places with a 1-0 victory over Atletico Madrid, who also lost further ground in the title race.

The winner came in the 15th minute when Lucas Ocampos flicked a header on for Isaac Romero to nod in at the back post.

Rayo Vallecano slipped to a fourth defeat in five as Vedat Muriqi scored a last-minute winner to earn Mallorca a 2-1 win, while Jaime Mata also left it late to snatch Getafe a dramatic 3-2 victory over Celta Vigo.

In Ligue 1, Denis Zakaria scored twice as Monaco moved a point behind second-placed opponents Nice with a 3-2 victory.

Zakaria put Monaco in front with a 30-yard screamer before Gaetan Laborde equalised, but the Swiss midfielder bagged his second of the night five minutes after the break.

Nice’s hopes of taking anything from the game diminished when Dante was handed a straight red card for a late challenge on Takumi Minamino.

But Evann Guessand did manage to level, only for Aleksandr Golovin to nick a winner.

Fourth-placed Brest were held to a 1-1 draw by rock-bottom Clermont Foot as both sides were reduced to 10 men in the closing stages.

Lyon came from behind to beat Montpellier 2-1 and earn a second successive win as second-half goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Maxence Caqueret cancelled out Armaud Nordin’s opener.

Goals from Mohamed Bamba and Tiemoue Bakayoko boosted Lorient’s survival hopes as they ran out 2-0 winners over Reims.

Nantes moved above opponents Toulouse with a 2-1 victory after goals from Mostafa Mohamed and Tino Kadewere put them two up before Thijs Dallinga scored a consolation late on.

Benjamin Bourigeaud struck on the hour to give Rennes earned a fifth straight win – 1-0 over Le Havre.

In the Bundesliga, Stuttgart kept their bid for Champions League football on course with a 3-1 win against Mainz.

Maximilian Mittelstadt, Jamie Leweling and on-loan Brighton striker Deniz Undav gave the hosts a commanding three-goal lead before Ludovic Ajorque grabbed a consolation as Mainz slipped to an 11th game without a win.

Hoffenheim’s Andrej Kramaric snatched a last-gasp equaliser to cancel out Max Finkgrafe’s 79th-minute opener to deny Cologne three vital points in their survival bid as the two sides drew 1-1.

Theo Hernandez’s first-half strike gave AC Milan a sixth win from seven Serie A matches with a 1-0 victory over Napoli.

The reigning champions made a bright start but Hernandez’s goal changed the complexion of the match for a Napoli side low on confidence.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Matteo Politano hit the woodwork for the visitors after the break but they could not find an equaliser to prevent a seventh league defeat of the season.

Napoli created the first big chance of the game when Kvaratskhelia skinned Matteo Gabbia and sent a drilled delivery into the area but Giovanni Simeone could not guide his effort beyond goalkeeper Mike Maignan.

Walter Mazzarri’s side continued to make most of the running in the opening stages but AC Milan took the lead against the run of play through a devastating counter-attack as Rafael Leao slipped Hernandez through on goal and he whipped the ball past Pierluigi Gollini at the near post.

Milan had an opportunity to make it two moments later when Leao found himself with space outside the box but his bending effort was diverted away from the top corner by Gollini.

Napoli’s frustrations were compounded when Piotr Zielinski picked himself up after being fouled on the left of the area but wastefully sent a free-kick out for a goal-kick.

The visitors had the first chance of the second half when Politano tried his luck from 20 yards but his effort did not quite get the curl needed to nestle in the bottom corner.

Hernandez could have doubled his tally in style when a corner fell to the defender inside the area and his clever back-heeled volley flew into Gollini’s gloves.

Napoli responded with another chance, this time Kvaratskhelia cut in from the left but hit a rather tame strike into Maignan’s grasp.

The visitors gifted possession to Yunus Musah and offered Milan a chance to give themselves some breathing space but Leao struck wide of the far post.

Napoli began to run out of ideas and were limited to long-range efforts, the next being Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa’s shot from 25 yards which flew comfortably wide of the target.

The visitors’ flurry of second-half chances did not stop and they came within inches of levelling when Jesper Lindstrom’s cross was deflected onto a post by Jan-Carlo Simic as Milan held on.

Stefano Pioli believes his longevity in the AC Milan top job speaks for itself amid ceaseless speculation the boss could soon be replaced at San Siro.

Milan, who won the Serie A title under Pioli in 2022, have won six of their last eight games in an unbeaten spell but nevertheless sit eight points behind league leaders and city rivals Inter Milan ahead of Sunday’s showdown with Napoli.

Pioli took charge of the Rossoneri in October 2019 and is poised to draw level with Milan great Arrigo Sacchi – a 1988 Scudetto winner and twice a European champion with the club – on 220 matches coached this weekend.

However, reports in Italy continue to suggest the likes of Julen Lopetegui and Antonio Conte are being lined up to replace him, a situation which the 58-year-old is growing increasingly fed up with.

He told a press conference: “Sacchi was a fantastic coach of his era, an innovator. Equalling him for the number of appearances in the Rossoneri dugout can only make me proud.

“I love my work, I have great passion for it, I have been fortunate in my career as a coach and a player.

“The pleasure of coaching always trumps the pressure and criticism, the positive elements prevail, in particular having a group of special people.”

Despite Napoli being the reigning champions, they are languishing down in seventh place under Walter Mazzarri. Pioli is suitably wary of their many threats, though.

“Napoli are not doing great in the table but they have great statistics, especially in attack,” he said. “Tactics have changed with Mazzarri. Napoli have quality, we need to face them with respect and focus.

“Both sides have forwards that can change the game, we will also need to be tight in the midfield. There needs to be a high level of organisation and play.”

Mazzarri has endured his own share of negative appraisals from Naples and beyond as he looks to steer the Azzurri back towards the Champions League places following a disappointing start to the campaign under predecessor Rudi Garcia.

The former Watford manager hopes Napoli turned a corner after last weekend’s victory over Hellas Verona.

He said: “Sixteen finals remain and perhaps the curse is lifting, let’s hope this is start of a new journey for us.”

Milan’s Dutch midfielder Tijjani Reijnders is banned for the Sunday clash with Mario Rui suspended for the visitors, while Victor Osimhen is away contesting the Africa Cup of Nations final with Nigeria.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s incredible strike saw Napoli come from behind to beat Verona 2-1 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Serie A.

A dramatic final 20 minutes saw Verona take the lead through Diego Coppola in the 72nd minute, but Napoli shortly equalised seven minutes later through Cyril Ngonge – who joined them from their opponents last month.

Kvaratskhelia then capped a dramatic comeback in the 87th minute with a fantastic goal dispatched into the top corner to win it for the hosts.

Napoli were straight out of the blocks to dominate in the opening stages with Matteo Politano firing in some dangerous crosses and they had a penalty shout waved away in the seventh minute when Kvaratskhelia was brought down in the box.

The Georgian forward had a fantastic chance minutes later with a powerful effort across goal that forced Lorenzo Montipo into a save at full stretch to tip the ball away.

Kvaratskhelia tested the goalkeeper again after blasting a first-time volley just outside of the box but Montipo reacted well to stop the ball finding the bottom corner.

Verona did well to defend a dangerous free-kick from Kvaratskhelia before the visitors went on the attack just before the break with Michael Folorunsho flicking the ball past the post before Darko Lazovic’s ambitious effort from distance curled wide.

The visitors had a great chance to take the lead minutes into the second half when Ondrej Duda’s free-kick found Coppola at the back post but the defender fired wide.

Verona threatened again when Lazovic’s curling effort was palmed out for a corner by Pierluigi Gollini.

Montipo was called into action at the other end to punch away Kvaratskhelia’s free-kick before the resulting corner saw the goalkeeper deny Giovanni Simeone from close-range.

Following some great pressure throughout the half, Verona took the lead in the 72nd minute when Tomas Suslov’s free-kick curled to Coppola at the back and the ball bounced off the defender’s shoulder across goal into the bottom corner.

Napoli pressed for the equaliser and came close minutes later when Montipo kept out Pasquale Mazzocchi’s shot before making another brilliant save to tip Jesper Lindstrom’s powerful strike from the rebound over the bar.

The hosts managed to level in the 79th minute when Lindstrom played a low cross into former Verona player Ngonge, who was unmarked in the box and slotted the ball into the bottom corner.

Kvaratskhelia completed the turnaround with a stunning strike, turning outside of the box before sweetly curling the ball into the top right corner and despite some late pressure from Verona the hosts were able to see the game out.

Napoli head coach Walter Mazzarri has stressed a Champions League place is still attainable for the Serie A title-holders as they prepare to host Hellas Verona on Sunday.

After winning a first Scudetto in 33 years last season under Luciano Spalletti, the Partenopei have had a significant drop off in a 2023-24 campaign that saw new boss Rudi Garcia replaced by Mazzarri in November.

Their nine league games since then have comprised three wins, two draws and four losses, and they are currently ninth in the table, four points behind fourth place.

Asked at a press conference if the Champions League spots remained a realistic objective for Napoli, Mazzarri said: “I don’t look at the table for my own reasons.

“But it’s clear that there are many teams within three to four points, and therefore the objective is possible.”

Since starting the calendar year with a 3-0 loss at Torino, Napoli – still without star striker Victor Osimhen due to international duty with Nigeria at the Africa Cup of Nations – have won 2-1 at home against Salernitana, beaten Fiorentina 3-0, lost 1-0 to AC Milan in the Supercoppa Italiana and drawn 0-0 at Lazio in their return to league action last weekend.

Mazzarri said: “In the last few games we created little, for various reasons, also due to the strength of the opponents, but we returned solid and balanced, after the very bad performance in Torino.

“It’s clear that we will need to be more aggressive and proactive to create scoring opportunities, perhaps even shooting from outside, because we can’t always enter the area with triangles and penetrations.

“This week we are also working on this aspect and I think we will see the results.”

Napoli face a Verona outfit who went into the weekend just outside the relegation zone, and who brought in a trio of players on transfer deadline day – Stefan Mitrovic, Karol Swiderski and Fabien Centonze.

Boss Marco Baroni told a press conference ahead of the trip to Stadio Diego Armando Maradona: “We need points, but we have to start from the performance.

“These are complicated and difficult stadiums, where we must not be afraid. We will have to play a match of personality, having great respect for the opponent.

“These are teams against which you have to be very careful within the performance. We will need to be compact, focused, and help each other on the pitch.”

Lazio and Napoli played out a bore draw in their Serie A clash at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday evening.

Neither side could find a breakthrough and had to settle for a 0-0 draw which will not live long in the memory.

Lazio had a chance to draw level on points with fourth-placed Atalanta while Napoli missed the opportunity to leapfrog their hosts.

Gustav Isaksen missed a presentable early chance for Lazio, who thought they had taken the lead moments later.

Taty Castellanos controlled the ball on his chest before executing a perfect overhead kick and burying the chance – only for the offside flag to cancel out his wonderful finish.

Isaksen and Castellanos then combined, with the latter’s smart flick hooked away by Leo Ostigard when it looked destined for the back of the net.

Napoli saw a Gianluca Gaetano long-range shot fly wide as they struggled to create chances throughout the contest.

Leander Dendoncker could be handed his debut for Napoli when they return to Serie A action against Lazio, but Victor Osimhen’s future looks set to be elsewhere next season.

Midfielder Dendoncker has joined the Partenopei on loan from Aston Villa for the rest of the season to bolster Walter Mazzarri’s options.

The defending Serie A champions continue to struggle for consistency, sitting down in ninth place, and were beaten by Inter in the Italian Supercoppa final in Riyadh, where Giovanni Simeone was sent off.

Nigeria international Osimhen is away on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Despite signing a contract extension which runs until June 2026 and is said to have a release clause of around £112million, last season’s Serie A top scorer continues to be linked with a move away.

Osimhen has already said he already has a plan on his “next step to do at the end of the season”.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis confirmed 25-year-old Osimhen was set to leave.

“We have known it since last summer – otherwise, the negotiation to extend would not have been so long,” De Laurentiis told Italian media.

“We already knew he would join Real Madrid, PSG or a Premier League club.”

Poland midfielder Piotr Zielinski is another player expected to leave Napoli in the summer, with Inter a reported likely destination.

Lazio were also involved in the Italian Super Cup, which was held in Saudi Arabia, and were beaten 3-0 by Inter in the semi-final.

Maurizio Sarri’s side return to Serie A action looking to keep up the pressure in the push for the European places.

Lazio will be without forward Mattia Zaccagni and captain Ciro Immobile through suspensions

Centre-back Patric has been carrying a shoulder problem, so Mario Gila could again come into the defence.

As well as missing Simeone, Napoli have Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Jens Cajuste serving suspensions.

Belgian forward Cyril Ngonge could feature following his recent move from Verona.

Aston Villa’s Leander Dendoncker has joined Napoli on loan for the rest of the season.

The midfielder moves to the defending Serie A champions as they struggle to retain their title, sitting ninth and 21 points off leaders Juventus.

He has made 15 appearances for Villa this season, scoring once, having joined from Wolves in 2022.