Serie A: Napoli Title Defence Crumbles After Home Defeat to Lazio

Napoli suffer first home league loss as Lazio dent title dream 

Napoli beaten 2-0 by Lazio at the Maradona as Cancellieri opens the scoring and Basic seals it. Conte’s men fade in Scudetto chase with Inter in command.

Cancellieri and Basic goals give Lazio a 2-0 win in Naples, handing Inter control of the title race...

Napoli’s grip on their Serie A title defence is all but over after a 2-0 home defeat to Lazio, who became the first away side to win at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in the league this season.

With Inter beating Cagliari the night before, Antonio Conte’s side knew only a victory would keep their fading Scudetto hopes alive. But a sluggish start proved costly as they fell behind early.

Lazio had repeatedly threatened down the left in the opening five minutes, but Napoli didn’t learn the lesson. Mattia Zaccagni slipped in the overlapping Kenneth Taylor, who squared for Matteo Cancellieri to tap in from close range.

It wasn’t over for the Partenopei yet - they’d rescued a league-high 13 points from 1-0 down this season. But despite dominating the ball, they barely troubled Edoardo Motta in the Lazio goal and went into the break without a single shot on target.

It could have been much worse for Napoli if not for Vanja Milinković-Savić. The keeper kept out efforts from Cancellieri and Nuno Tavares and also saved a Mattia Zaccagni penalty.

Stanislav Lobotka was penalised for fouling Tijjani Noslin on the break, but Zaccagni - still without a goal in 2026 - saw his weak spot-kick comfortably saved by the Serbian.

A double change at the break didn’t fix Napoli’s problems. The same issues carried into the second half when Taylor drove at the heart of their defence and dragged a shot wide. It was only a brief let-off, as Lazio doubled their lead before the hour.

Lazio take three points back to the capital 👏#NapoliLazio pic.twitter.com/WrRi1EiLul

— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) April 18, 2026

Noslin burst down the left and cut it back for Cancellieri, who miskicked with the goal at his mercy. But his blushes were spared as the scuffed effort fell to Toma Basic, who made no mistake from close range.

Napoli finally forced Edoardo Motta into a real save when the lively Alisson Santos drilled a powerful effort at the near post. At the other end, Nuno Tavares had a golden chance to kill the game off but fired wide from Noslin’s cutback.

Mario Gila is the Panini Player of the Match! 🏆#NapoliLazio pic.twitter.com/FK3NYJVPdh

— Lega Serie A (@SerieA_EN) April 18, 2026

In truth, a comeback never looked likely. Napoli’s failure to complete a first league double over Lazio since 2021/22 leaves the Serie A title all but in Inter’s hands. For Lazio, just a second away league win in seven lifts Maurizio Sarri’s side back into ninth.