Mario Balotelli came close to scoring his first goal since returning to Serie A, but Napoli held off a late charge from Genoa to secure a 2-1 victory on Saturday, reclaiming the top spot in the league.
Balotelli, who rejoined Serie A after more than four years, has made six appearances this season, totaling just 57 minutes on the pitch. The 34-year-old was brought on with seven minutes remaining and nearly made an immediate impact. An attempt by Andrea Pinamonti deflected off Balotelli’s knee, but Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret managed to deflect the ball off the post.
Meret’s performance included several crucial saves in the second half, as Genoa fought back after trailing 2-0 at halftime due to headers from Frank Anguissa and Amir Rrahmani. Pinamonti brought Genoa back into contention with a well-placed shot into the bottom right corner just six minutes after the break. However, the loss marked Genoa’s first defeat since Patrick Vieira took over as head coach last month and came in their first match under the ownership of Romanian businessman Dan Șucu.
The defeat leaves Genoa in 13th place in Serie A, just two points above the relegation zone, while Napoli moved one point ahead of Atalanta, who will face Empoli on Sunday.
In other matches, Lazio recovered from a heavy 6-0 defeat to Inter Milan, narrowly defeating 10-man Lecce 2-1. Lecce’s hopes were dashed just before halftime when Taty Castellanos had a shot saved, and his follow-up was handled by defender Frédéric Guilbert, resulting in a straight red card. Castellanos converted the resulting penalty.
Lecce equalized shortly after the break with a volley from Tete Morente, but Lazio secured the win with a goal from substitute Adam Marusic three minutes from time. Lecce nearly leveled again in stoppage time, but Mohamed Kaba’s header hit the crossbar.
Lazio’s victory lifts them to fourth place, while Lecce remains two points above the relegation zone. In another match, Bologna won 2-0 at Torino, despite having a penalty saved.
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