Inter and Napoli held, the battle for the Scudetto continues

The battle for the Serie A title this season will go down to the wire as Inter Milan and Napoli were held to draws by Lazio and Parma, respectively, on Sunday night.

Napoli couldn’t find a breakthrough at Parma after hitting the woodwork twice, and a late VAR penalty overturned left them still a point above the Nerrazuri.

Inter, on their part, were held to a 2-2 draw at the Stadi Meazza by Lazio in an incredibly eventful match. All thanks to that Pedro twice cancelled out goals from Yan Bisseck and Denzel Dumfries.

This was an opportunity for Inter to overtake the Partonopei on the log,  as Antonio Conte’s men played another goalless draw but couldn’t find the winner against a resilient Lazio side that came back twice in the game.

The one-point gap leaves everything unchanged, meaning the winner will be decided in the final round.

The Nerazzurri also failed to take advantage of the oozed sense of electricity spurred on by a Stadio Meazza crowd with no away supporters present, as the stages were marked by frenzy and a lack of precision in the final third.

They made a swift team move as Marcus Thuram broke free on the right and whipped in a cross that flew across the entire box to the opposite side, where Federico Dimarco’s first-time strike was well parried by Christos Mandas.

Although Inter struggled in creating chances, they asserted their presence in Lazio’s half, but the visitors gradually dropped deeper, ultimately risking a goal themselves five minutes before the break, with two dangerous moments in quick succession.

Gustav Isaksen attempted a placed shot that flashed just wide of the far post. He then called  Yann Sommer into action after being played through at the end of a quick counterattack.

Inter eventually took the lead in the added time of the first half again from a set piece. Dimarco’s volley from a Hakan Calhanoglu corner got blocked by Alessio Romagnoli, but Bisseck reacted quickly by controlling the rebound and firing into the roof of the net.

The Biancocelesti tried to start the second half on the front foot after an impressive display in the first interval by pushing their line higher in an attempt to press Simone Inzaghi’s men and disrupt their build-up.

Nuno Tavares released a low cross that sent a scare through the Nerazzurri defence but drifted untouched across the entire box.

As Inter began to dangerously slow the tempo and looked for the second, Lazio were inches from an equaliser when Boulaye Dia failed to hit the target with Sommer rushing out to close him down.

They eventually restored parity when Pedro struck at the end of a chaotic sequence.  Adam Marušić’s deflected shot fell to Matías Vecino, who then set up the Spaniard, who placed the shot in a corner. The linesman initially raised his flag for an offside, but a VAR review confirmed the goal.

Inter regained the lead again from another set piece as Calhanoglu’s pinpoint free kick from the right went to Denzel Dumfries, who rose above everyone to head the ball past Mandas at the near post.

Lazio restored parity this time around from the penalty spot after a VAR check penalised Bisseck for an elbow touch. A composed Pedro converted the spotkick with a precise strike to bring Lazio level again.

Inter had the chance to go ahead again in the final stages of the game, but a glaring miss by Marko Arnautović to a goal disallowed for offside summed up the eventful encounter.

Inter will travel to Como while Napoli will welcome Cagliari to the Diego Maradona Stadium. A win for Partonopei will secure another Scudetto for Conte on his return to the Serie A after success with Inter and Juventus.