Napoli are no longer in the Scudetto picture, and they have none to blame but themselves following another inexplicable slip-up. Luciano Spalletti’s men were 2-0 up against bottom-half Empoli by the 80th minute, only to finish on the wrong end of a 3-2 scoreline.
The Partenopei were firmly in the race for their first Serie A title since the glory days of Diego Maradona only a week ago, but back-to-back late heartbreaks have knocked them out of the Scudetto race.
The fans might have forgiven Napoli a frustrating 1-1 home draw with Roma in midweek Serie A action, yet they are pointing fingers following a horrific Sunday afternoon in Tuscany.
Spalletti’s side looked on course to claim a routine victory at the Stadio Carlo Castellani after Dries Mertens and Lorenzo Insigne put two unanswered goals past Empoli.
However, in one of the most shocking comebacks in recent Serie A history, Aurelio Andreazzoli’s men fought back to turn things around in a mere eight minutes. Liam Henderson pulled one back for the hosts in the 80th minute to launch a comeback.
Inter loanee Andrea Pinamonti then stole the show, notching up a quick-fire brace to sink Napoli and given his parent club a much-needed leg-up in a keenly-contest Scudetto run-in. Napoli are now seven points behind table-topping Milan, who won 2-1 at Lazio in dramatic fashion later in the evening.
Not since 1942 had the Partenopei lost a Serie A fixture when being 2-0 up, yet Spalletti’s men shot themselves in the foot once again. Napoli could not have picked a worse moment to meet an unwanted piece of history.
Spalletti took the blame for his side’s collapse at Empoli.
“Inevitably, the coach has to shoulder much of the blame for the attitude and consistency. The responsibility lies with the coach,” the Napoli boss said, as relayed by TUTTOmercatoWEB. “I am responsible for this team, for their attitude, their approach, so I take the consequences for what happens on the field.
“Much of it has to be my fault. We’ve been working together for almost a year, there ought to be a mentality and reaction coming from my work with these players. We were challenging for the Scudetto, as everyone said, we had the qualities to challenge for the Scudetto, but if the level is this, I cannot avoid being called into question.“