Serie A: Torino frustrate Napoli as Nainggolan seals Inter win

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Napoli's title hopes took a further blow on Sunday as Carlo Ancelotti's side were held to a goalless draw for the third time in four league matches to drop further points against Torino and trail champions 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 their Serie A bid already all but over.

Champions Juventus are firmly on track for an eighth consecutive title after Cristiano Ronaldo scored in a 3-0 win over lowly Frosinone on Friday.

Napoli proved wasteful at the San Paolo Stadium with Arkadiusz Milik missing a string of chances to break the deadlock as Lorenzo Insigne hit the post in the 74th minute.

On-loan Chelsea defender Ola Aina threatened for Torino in the dying minutes but was chased down by Brazilian Allan as Walter Mazzarri's side stayed ninth – three points off the Europa League places.

Earlier Sunday, 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 defeat by Genoa.

Nainggolan rifled in low on 78 minutes after Danilo D'Ambrosio had opened the scoring five minutes earlier, with Manolo Gabbiadini equalizing for Sampdoria in between.

Lorenzo Insigne of Napoli sees his shot saved by the feet of Salvatore Sirigu of Torino during their league clash on February 17, 2019. /VCG Photo

It was Inter's third straight win after a recent slump as Luciano Spalletti's side sit seven points adrift of Napoli in third.

Argentine forward Mauro Icardi watched from the stands, along with his wife Wanda Nara, who is also his agent, after being stripped of the captaincy amid protracted contract negotiations.

Lazio sink in Genoa

Earlier, Genoa captain Domenico Criscito scored deep into injury time to grab a 2-1 win over Lazio which left the capital club in seventh, four points adrift of fourth-placed AC Milan in the race for Champions League qualification.

Milan Badelj had given injury-depleted Lazio a lift before the break after their Europa League defeat by Sevilla in midweek.

But Genoa punished the Romans late in the second half with Antonio Sanabria scoring on 75 minutes and Criscito sealing victory with a stunning half-volley from distance three minutes into added time.

Europa League hopefuls Fiorentina were saved by VAR amid controversy after the referee disallowed rivals SPAL a goal and instead awarded a penalty which the Tuscans converted before winning 4-1.

Mattia Valoti's deflected 75th-minute strike had been greeted with delight by the home crowd as it appeared to have given relegation-threatened SPAL a 2-1 advantage.

But the referee immediately ordered a video review which confirmed Felipe had fouled Federico Chiesa in the build-up to the goal which he disallowed and instead awarded Fiorentina a penalty at the other end of the field.

Jordan Veretout stepped up and converted from the spot with the decision proving to be a killer blow for SPAL, who sit just three points above the relegation zone.

Giovanni Simeone added a third goal minutes later, and Brazilian Gerson a fourth as Fiorentina moved up to eighth, three points off the European places.

Source(s): AFP