Napoli narrowly defeat Fiorentina amid worsening injury problems

The title holders Napoli secured a tight 2-1 victory over struggling Fiorentina in Serie A on Saturday, maintaining their challenge for the championship just days after an early exit from the Champions League.

Napoli suffered a 3-2 defeat to Chelsea on Wednesday and a 3-0 loss to Juventus in their previous league outing, yet they recovered with fine strikes from Antonio Vergara in the 11th minute and Miguel Gutierrez soon after the interval.

Battling a severe injury list that features key midfielder Kevin De Bruyne and forward Romelu Lukaku, Napoli saw their skipper Giovanni Di Lorenzo sidelined with a knee twist during the opening period.

"It is a major blow, the cruciate ligament," manager Antonio Conte remarked post match. "We are exhausting these players, we are ruining the sport... with 60-70 fixtures each campaign, it amounts to self destruction."

Fiorentina pushed back and made Napoli work hard after Manor Solomon netted on 57 minutes, though the hosts clung to their slim advantage through energetic pressing.

Inter Milan face Cremonese on Sunday and top the standings with 52 points, followed by AC Milan on 47 before their midweek clash at Bologna. 

Napoli moved temporarily into third place on 46 points. Roma sit on 43 ahead of Mondays fixture against Udinese.

Napoli entered the match having claimed only one victory in their previous seven outings across all tournaments.