Empoli rocked Napoli’s bid for Champions League football with an emphatic 4-2 win at the Stadio Carlo Castellani last night.
Last year’s Serie B runners-up have defied their lowly league position to play some of the most entertaining football in Italy this term and last night saw them outperform Rafael Benitez’s free-scoring Napoli.
Granted, they only fashioned two goals themselves – through Massimo Maccarone and Riccardo Saponara – with two own goals boosting a side who have now climbed to 14th in the table.
Miguel Britos and substitute Raul Albiol put through their own net for Napoli, who were themselves helped out by an own goal from Vincent Laurini before Marek Hamsik fired home a late screamer.
With five games of the Serie A season remaining, fourth-placed Napoli are five points behind Roma.
Maccarone rolled back the years, controlling the ball in the area before leaving Mariano Andujar rooted to the spot with a powerful finish after eight minutes.
Empoli increased their lead on the stroke of half-time. Saponara’s stabbed cross from the byline forced Andujar to punch the ball into Britos’ face and then into the net.
Then, one minute into stoppage time, Saponara grabbed the third goal with a scissor kick.
Napoli clawed a goal back in the 64th minute as Hamsik’s close-range shot bounced off Sepe and looped into the net off Laurini.
A third own goal boosted Empoli into a three-goal lead, with Albiol the man to slice the ball past Andujar from a Mirko Valdifiori corner.
One minute into stoppage time Hamsik did produce the best goal of the game as his swerving screamer nestled inside the near post.
P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | |
Juventus | 33 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 63 | 19 | 76 |
Lazio | 33 | 19 | 5 | 9 | 63 | 31 | 62 |
Roma | 33 | 16 | 13 | 4 | 46 | 25 | 61 |
Napoli | 33 | 16 | 8 | 9 | 59 | 43 | 56 |
Sampdoria | 33 | 12 | 15 | 6 | 41 | 36 | 51 |
Genoa | 33 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 49 | 38 | 50 |
Fiorentina | 33 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 46 | 41 | 49 |
Torino | 33 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 40 | 36 | 48 |
Inter | 33 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 50 | 39 | 48 |
Milan | 33 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 46 | 42 | 43 |
Palermo | 33 | 10 | 12 | 11 | 46 | 48 | 42 |
Chievo | 33 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 25 | 33 | 40 |
Verona | 33 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 41 | 57 | 40 |
Udinese | 33 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 37 | 45 | 38 |
Empoli | 33 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 38 | 42 | 38 |
Sassuolo | 33 | 8 | 12 | 13 | 39 | 52 | 36 |
Atalanta | 33 | 6 | 14 | 13 | 31 | 46 | 32 |
Cagliari | 33 | 5 | 9 | 19 | 38 | 63 | 24 |
Cesena | 33 | 4 | 12 | 17 | 31 | 58 | 24 |
Parma (-7) | 33 | 6 | 5 | 22 | 27 | 62 | 16 |