Napoli Soar To The Top Of Serie A Amid Heartbreak In Tuscany

Fiorentina’s 56-year wait for a Serie A title is officially extended by at least another season, but Napoli remains on track to win two in three following their 3-0 win in Florence.

But the elation was short-lived by Azzurri coach Antonio Conte, who was overcome with grief at full-time when told about the death of a fan he had grown close to.

It was a bittersweet evening for loyal Napoli fans following Daniele’s story closely. Despite the anguish off the field, their team are the Serie A table-toppers with 44 points at the completion of the first half of the season. The statement win at the Stadio Artemio Franchi stretched the Partenopei’s unbeaten run there to seven.

Winless in the last four league matches, Fiorentina remain slumped in sixth after a blistering start to the campaign (clinching nine victories in 14), which sparked hopes of bringing glory to Tuscany for the first time since the Mario Maraschi era of 1969.

In fairness, there wasn’t much La Viola boss Raffaele Palladino could do from the touchline as the contest was put to bed by two second-half mistakes.

“We certainly came up against a strong side,” Palladino told us. “Compliments to Napoli. They exploited every single error we made. I’m concentrating on how we can get better.”

Improving means conceding less and scoring more: Fiorentina has leaked nine goals over the past five matches in all competitions and only scored four times, not what their American owner Rocco Commisso anticipated after such a great start.

Arguably, the best summer buy of any Serie A club was Moise Kean, who joined from Juventus for $13.4M (€13M) and has so far scored 11 league goals, a career-best on Italian soil and just over a third of the team’s total (31).

But against Napoli, Fiorentina’s midfielders failed to provide quality service to the 24-year-old, who, along with Riccardo Sottil, scored last week to help Fiorentina rally from behind twice to steal a 2-2 draw against Juventus.

Undoubtedly, more was expected from them against Napoli, who have often enough looked beatable this term despite boasting the best defensive record (12 conceded) in Serie A.

“Napoli’s a great side and will fight until the last day to win the title,” Sottil explained in the post-match press conference.

“We [Fiorentina] are in a difficult period, but we want to turn a corner so we can climb the standings. Losing is part of growth.”

Of course, there is no shame in being defeated by one of the top sides, but Palladino desperately wanted a better showing in his first-ever Serie A managerial meeting with four-time Scudetto winner Conte.

Both represented Juventus for portions of their playing careers, with Conte, who is 15 years older, retiring the season Palladino signed for the Bianconeri from Sporting Benevento in 2004.

Palladino, 40, would love nothing more than to follow in Conte’s career footsteps, with both hailing from the southern regions of Campania and Puglia, respectively. The former notched up 10 goals at Juve in 51 matches, including a hat trick against Triestina during Juve’s Serie B season, while the latter scored 44 times in 420.

Additionally, Palladino was capped by Italy three times, debuting in 2007. Conte scored twice in 20 international appearances, including a stunning overhead kick against Turkey at Euro 2000.

But this is now the Gigliati’s longest winless stretch since September 2022 (D2 L3), while Napoli haven’t lost at the Artemio Franchi since April 2018, drawing three and winning four.

Napoli dedicated the win to one of their most loyal young supporters, Daniele, who passed away on Saturday following a long battle with illness.

Clearly affected by the tragedy, Conte chose not to attend the post-match to address the media, choosing to post on social media to pay tribute.

“Love enclosed in a smile. Ciao Daniele,” read Conte’s post underneath a photo of himself and Daniele.

Meanwhile, Napoli’s assistant coach, Cristian Stellini, amplified the same sentiments on behalf of the club.

“We are very happy about the win, but at the same time, we received a bad blow,” Stellini confirmed during post-match speech.

“The coach apologizes for not being here, but we have lost someone very dear to us, very close to all of Napoli, a child who left us just this afternoon.”

The thoughts and prayers of the entire Napoli squad were showcased over the past few matches, with the most notable display – a wristband with Forza Daniele written – coming from Cameroonian midfielder Frank Anguissa when he scored against Udinese.

“Our thoughts go to him [Daniele], to his family and to all the children who are like him and suffer from serious illnesses from which there is no recovery. Thank you. We salute little Daniele.”

Stellini then turned to questions about Napoli and their four-match win streak, confirming the satisfaction amongst the coaching staff and the playing group ahead of the transfer window.

“We get 110% every day from the players,” Stellini said. “We have the will to return to the level we’re used to.”

Euro 2020 winner Leonardo Spinazzola joined Napoli last summer, but limited playing time has thrust him into the transfer window spotlight.

Fortunately, opportunity knocked for the former Roma player on Saturday. With Georgian superstar Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Matteo Politano missing through injury, Spinazzola was handed just his fourth start in 2024-25.

Along with goalscorers David Neres, Romelu Lukaku and Scott McTominay, the 31-year-old was recognized as one of the best on-field by the media, and spoke to us post-match.

“I want to give a big hug to Daniele’s family,” Spinazzola reiterated before deflecting questions about a possible departure.

“You can’t be happy when you don’t play. It’s only normal that things can change from one moment to the next. I’m working every day and am always ready. My mind is on Napoli.”

Three-time champions Napoli will now take aim at Hellas Verona on matchday 20, with Conte seeking revenge for the shock 3-0 loss at the Stadio Marco Bentegodi on the opening day of the season.

Fiorentina couldn’t ask for an easier route to return to winning ways when they take on last-placed AC Monza. But it’s a catch-22 situation for Palladino, who faces a bittersweet trip to his former home, the club he saved from relegation two years ago.