MILAN (AP) — Antonio Vergara gave defending Serie A champion Napoli fans another reason to cheer on Saturday amid a deepening injury crisis.
Vergara scored a brilliant goal in the Champions League in midweek and contributed a goal and an assist in Serie A to help Napoli beat Fiorentina 2-1.
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It was Napoli’s first win in four games in all competitions and narrowed the gap on Serie A leaders Inter Milan to six points.
Inter Milan plays at Cremonese on Sunday.
Napoli will be looking to bounce back from the knockout stages of the Champions League after losing 3-2 to Chelsea on Wednesday.
Vergara scored his first goal for Napoli in that defeat and added his first Serie A goal in the 11th minute on Saturday. Rasmus Hoylund was blocked when receiving a long ball from the Fiorentina defender, but this allowed Vergara to grab the ball and sprint past before drilling into the bottom right corner.
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The native-born midfielder jumped over the billboard and took to the track to celebrate with the fans.
Fiorentina should have doubled their lead but came close to equalizing after Roberto Piccoli’s free-kick header hit the post, and Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret made an incredible save to deny Albert Guðmundsson’s close-range header as the game continued.
However, also during this move, Giovanni Di Lorenzo landed awkwardly and his left knee seemed to buckle beneath him. The Napoli captain, visibly in pain, was carried on a stretcher to an ambulance.
Napoli have struggled with injuries all season, with missing players including Kevin De Bruyne, Frank Anguissa, David Neres, Billy Gilmour, Matteo Politano and Amir Rahmani.
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Napoli extended their lead early in the second half when Vergara picked out Miguel Gutierrez on the right and cut inside past Fiorentina defender Robin Gosens before firing the ball into the far bottom corner.
Salomon Manor narrowed the gap in the 57th minute when Meret blocked Piccoli’s shot and rebounded.
Fiorentina is 18th in Serie A, just one point away from safety.
Berardi returns
Domenico Berardi returned to the starting lineup and helped Sassuolo beat Pisa 3-1 with a goal and an own goal. Berardi made his first start since November after suffering a hamstring strain.
Sasulo moved up to 11th, while Pisa remained bottom, four points from safety.
Verona, ranked second from last, then faced Cagliari, who was in the middle of the table.
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