Napoli’s title hopes took a further blow on Sunday as Carlo Ancelotti’s side was held to a goalless draw for the third time in four league matches to drop further points against Torino and trail champion Juventus by 13 points.
Napoli had drawn at home against AC Milan two weeks ago and at Fiorentina last time out and will face a top-of-the-table clash against Juventus on March 3 with its Serie A bid already all but over. Earlier, Radja Nainggolan scored the winner for Inter Milan to consolidate third position with a 2-1 win over Sampdoria at the San Siro, while Lazio’s Champions League hopes took a knock with a 2-1 defeat by Genoa.
Frustrating draw
In Germany, Borussia Moenchengladbach was frustrated in the attempt to force its way further into the Bundesliga title race on Sunday when it was held to a 1-1 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt. The draw left third-placed Gladbach on 43 points, five behind champion Bayern Munich.
The visitors dominated the match but were unable to convert their consistent pressure into goals, with midfielder Thorgan Hazard enduring a frustrating day in front of goal.
The results: Serie A: Genoa 2 (Sanabria 75, Criscito 90+3) bt Lazio 1 (Badelj 44); Empoli 3 (Krunic 34, Acquah 37, Farias 60) bt Sassuolo 0; Udinese 1 (Teodorczyk 85) bt Chievo 0; Inter Milan 2 (D’Ambrosio 73, Nianggolan 78) bt Sampdoria 1 (Gabbiadini 75); Napoli 0 drew with Torino 0.
La Liga: Valencia 0 drew with Espanyol 0; Villarreal 3 (Gonalez 20, Toko Ekambi 45+1, Pedraza 86) bt Sevilla 0; Real Betis 1 (Lo Celso 15) drew with Alaves 1 (Maripan 28).
Bundesliga: Eintracht Frankfurt 1 (Danny da Costa 45+1) drew with Borussia Moenchengladbach 1 (Zakaria 82); Bayer Leverkusen 2 (Havertz 18, Bailey 66) bt Fortuna Dusseldorf 0.