This matchday pitted Juventus and Napoli together in a top of the table clash that saw the Bianconeri continue their run up the table and claim first spot after their sluggish start to the season.
It was a game of a lot of little jabs being thrown with the knockout blow being hit by Simone Zaza in the 88th minute, despite Napoli having the higher share of possession playing away at the Juventus Stadium.
There was very little to talk about from the first-half other than a few chances. The second 45 livened up with Juventus still struggling to break the Napoli defence until that decisive Zaza goal two minutes from time.
The result now makes it 15 straight wins in the league for Juventus, moving them from sitting 12th after 10 games to the top of the league standings after 25 rounds.
Juventus back at the top
Some predicted this would happen, others thought it might be someone else’s year. But Juventus are proving that regardless of their early season underwhelming form, coinciding with their low position on the league table they always had the character to bounce back. And with 13 games remaining in Serie A they will be confident of a fifth straight Scudetto.
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Can Juventus be beaten?
As previously mentioned, the stats speak for themselves. Juventus have 15 straight victories to their name and during that period have climbed from 12th to 1st. Massimiliano Allegri’s men haven’t conceded a goal in 566 minutes (or just over 9 hours) of football, keeping six clean sheets as well as scoring 13 goals during this time. It is pretty obvious the Juventus most know is back and it is certainly going to take the best performance of the year for any club to beat them if they continue playing in this rich vein of form.
Is the title gone for Napoli?
This match was touted as the title decider going into the match, however Napoli have still played some good football. Juventus stopped their 8 game winning streak which explains why both teams are currently almost 10 points clear of third. At some stage the Torino outfit will drop points on the run home given it is unlikely they will win 28 straight games.
So for Napoli the key is to keep winning and avoid dropping points in the hope they can capitalise on when their rivals do. Being one point behind and means the pressure still remains on Juventus to continue their winning streak, because in football anything is possible.
Serie A title only a two horse race
Although this game was going to help 3rd and lower because one team had to drop points it is quite prominent that the Serie A title is down to just Juventus and Napoli. The other clubs, although having a game to play and will change the standing will still be at best 8 points back on Juventus. For the higher mid table teams it is now a tussle for who can fill out the minor spots for position in the European competitions.
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