NAPLES: Matias Vecino’s brilliant long-range strike earned Lazio a 1-0 win over Napoli in Serie A on Friday, ending the runaway leaders’ winning streak of eight games.

The Uruguay midfielder drilled in the winner on 67 minutes, unleashing a thumping half-volley from 25 yards to send Lazio, who made it three league wins in a row for the first time since October, provisionally two places up to second in the standings on 48 points, one above third-placed Inter Milan and AC Milan in fourth, both with a game in hand.

Runaway leaders Napoli, on 65 points, have suffered only their second league defeat this season after they had lost away to Inter in January.

“We had to convince the boys that they could come here and get a result, and that’s a lot,” Lazio coach Maurizio Sarri told a news conference. “If you read Napoli’s numbers at home, it becomes difficult to think you can win. This Napoli team is going to win [the title] and I envy it to death. [Coach Luciano] Spalletti has been phenomenal.”

Vecino had gone close to scoring at the start when he glanced Luis Alberto’s free-kick towards goal only for Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo to head over from under his own crossbar.

While Napoli had more possession in the first half, Vecino’s chance was the closest either side had and the game was goalless at halftime.

Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski could have put the hosts in front just before the hour mark, when he received a neat pass from Victor Osimhen on the edge of the box but his low shot — although powerful — narrowly missed the target.

Lazio eventually took the lead and sealed the win in the 67th minute through Vecino, who picked up a ball cleared by Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and sent a stunning first-time shot from a distance which went inside the left post.

Napoli pushed for an equaliser in the final 15 minutes but despite many late chances they did not manage to rescue a point.

Osimhen, the league’s top scorer with 19 goals, headed powerfully against the bar from a Kvaratskhelia cross and Ivan Provedel produced a terrific stop to keep out the rebound from Kim Min-jae.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic grazed the crossbar with a free-kick late on for Lazio.

Napoli were unbeaten in their previous seven Serie A home games against Lazio (W6, D1), with their last such defeat dating back to May 2015, under Rafael Benitez.

“The draw was the correct and fairest thing. It happened to us several times that we didn’t settle for a draw and we won, tonight went badly and we accept it,” Spalletti said.

It is only the fourth time in 25 Serie A this season that Napoli have failed to win.

They remain overwhelming favourites for the title — their first since 1990 — but still have to play Atalanta, AC Milan, Juventus and Inter Milan.

Published in Dawn, March 5th, 2023