Whatever Antonio Conte said to his team at halftime seemed to work, as Napoli defeated Empoli 1-0 in Serie A on Sunday after showing significant improvement in the second half.
A penalty from Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was enough for Napoli to clinch the win and put them three points ahead of Inter Milan, who were set to play Roma later.
This was the first goal Empoli’s home fans had seen this season, as all three previous league matches at the Stadio Carlo Castellani had ended in 0-0 draws.
For Empoli, it was a second consecutive loss, having previously been unbeaten until their defeat against Lazio before the international break.
Napoli’s goalkeeper Elia Caprile, who was on loan at Empoli last season, made several outstanding saves, making things difficult for his former team.
Lorenzo Colombo also missed a chance in the first half, where Empoli played better than Napoli.
However, the home team would regret their missed chances when Napoli took the lead in the 63rd minute after Tino Anjorin fouled Matteo Politano in the box.
Kvaratskhelia remained calm during the penalty, using a stuttering run-up and waiting for the goalkeeper to move before rolling the ball into the center of the net.
Since a loss to Hellas Verona on the opening day of the season during Conte’s first match, Napoli has won six of its last seven Serie A games, with the only other result being a 0-0 draw against Juventus.
