April 19, (THEWILL) – On Monday, Napoli’s attempt for their first Serie A title in 32 years was thwarted as Roma salvaged a 1-1 draw with an injury-time equaliser from Stephan El Shaarawy.
With five games remaining, Lorenzo Insigne’s early penalty appeared to have put third-placed Napoli on track to close to within two points of league leaders AC Milan, but El Shaarawy’s late intervention put them four points behind.
Inter Milan, the reigning champion, are two points behind its city rivals in second place, but they have a game in hand.
Following a 3-2 home setback to Fiorentina last time out, Napoli has had a potentially disastrous run and were hoping to improve.
Early in the game, Hirving Lozano ran onto a ball into the box and was challenged from behind by Roma defender Roger Ibanez in the 11th minute at the Estadio Diego Armando Maradona.
The referee initially did not award a penalty, but after a VAR review, he did, and Insigne scored his ninth league goal of the season into the bottom corner.
Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen’s shot was blocked by Chris Smalling in the 20th minute, and visiting goalkeeper Rui Patricio put aside Lozano’s follow-up effort.
Before halftime, Osimhen almost equalised against the run of play, flicking Lorenzo Pellegrini’s free-kick against his own crossbar.
On the hour mark, England attacker Tammy Abraham had an opportunity to equalise, but he misjudged a close-range header. With four players booked in less than 20 minutes of the second half, a heated match threatened to explode.
Roma began to appear dangerous going forward, and they were enraged that Nicolo Zaniolo was not granted a penalty after he was tripped by Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret. In the aftermath, the referee showed substitute goalkeeper Daniel Fuzato on Mourinho’s bench a red card.
Late in the game, Osimhen had a chance to put the game to bed when he bore down on goal, but the Nigeria striker pushed the ball into the side-netting. Then, Luciano Spalletti made the costly decision to substitute Osimhen and Insigne late in the game.
In the first of eight minutes of additional time, Abraham’s flick found replacement El Shaarawy, who struck a low shot into the bottom corner. The visitors had all the momentum, but Napoli managed to hold on for a dismal stalemate.
Under Spalletti guidance, Napoli are aiming for their first Scudetto since the second Diego Maradona-inspired success in 1990, but this tense stalemate could be important come the conclusion of the season.
In much the same way, the point did not aid Jose Mourinho’s Roma’s chances of finishing in the top four, as they squandered a chance to close the distance on fourth-placed Juventus to three points.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
