NAPLES, Italy: Napoli fans are celebrating again in anticipation of sealing the Italian league soccer title later Thursday.
Thousands of supporters turned up outside the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples hours before the team’s game at Udinese in northern Italy.
Napoli can clinch their first Serie A title in more than three decades — since Maradona led the southern club to the 1987 and 1990 championships — if it wins or draws at Udinese.
Napoli missed out on a chance to clinch the title when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Salernitana on Sunday and then watched as second-place Lazio beat Sassuolo 2-0 on Wednesday to again delay the celebration.
Still, Napoli hold a 15-point lead over Lazio with six matches to play and it’s seemingly only a matter of time before the title becomes official for the Partenopei.
No team south of Milan or Turin have won the Italian league since Roma claimed the title in 2001.
The stadium in Naples will be open for fans to watch the game against Udinese on giant screens and a capacity crowd of more than 50,000 is expected.
Also, 11,000 Napoli fans are expected to follow the team in Udine.
Napoli fans celebrate again in anticipation of soccer title
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Napoli fans celebrate again in anticipation of soccer title
- Napoli can clinch their first Serie A title in more than three decades — since Maradona led the southern club to the 1987 and 1990 championships
- Napoli missed out on a chance to clinch the title when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Salernitana
Barcelona pounces on Real Madrid stumble and regains lead of La Liga with a 3-0 win over Levante
- Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna
MADRID: Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrid’s stumble and regained the Spanish league lead with a comfortable 3-0 win over relegation-threatened Levante on Sunday.
Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Fermín López scored a goal each as Barcelona ended a two-game losing streak to get back in front of rival Madrid, which lost 2-1 at Osasuna on Saturday.
Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna.
Barcelona was coming off a 2-1 loss to Girona in the league and a 4-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.
“It was important to win and earn three points again,” Barcelona defender João Cancelo said. “Soccer gives you these opportunities to rebound and that’s what we did today, playing well again after two bad games.”
Barcelona had earned a clean sheet only once in its previous six games in all competitions.
Good start for Barcelona
Bernal scored from close range four minutes into the match at the Camp Nou Stadium. The 18-year-old Bernal had scored his first goal with the first team two rounds ago in a win over Mallorca.
“They had an early chance but my goal helped us settle and gain some confidence,” Bernal said.
De Jong added to the lead from inside the area in the 32nd and López sealed the victory with a beautiful long-range shot in the 81st, with the ball ricocheting off the post before going into the net.
Levante’s Australian goalkeeper Mathew Ryan kept Barcelona from adding the fourth with a pair of outstanding saves in a row in the final minutes, first off a header by Raphinha and then off a point-blank strike from López on the rebound.
It was the fourth straight defeat for Levante, which sits in 19th place. It is one point ahead of last-place Oviedo, which has a game in hand.
Levante has only one victory in its last eight matches.
Pedri entered the match in the 66th to make his return to action after an injury layoff.
Other results
Sevilla won 1-0 at 10-man Getafe for its second win in its last 10 matches in all competitions.
Djibril Sow scored a 64th-minute winner for the visitors. Getafe played a man down from the 26th after a straight red card for Djene Dakonam.
The result left Sevilla in 11th place, immediately above Getafe.
Third-place Villarreal, Barcelona’s next league opponent, can restore a three-point gap to fourth-place Atletico Madrid if it beats Valencia at home later Sunday. Atletico beat Espanyol 4-2 at home on Saturday.
