NAPLES, Italy — Rasmus Højlund scored a crucial late winner to lift Napoli to the top of the Serie A table on Sunday, sealing a 2-1 comeback victory over Genoa at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Højlund, who joined the Italian champions from Manchester United in the summer, netted his fourth goal for Napoli in all competitions by reacting quickest to a rebound in the 75th minute. The 22-year-old Denmark international was on hand after Genoa goalkeeper Nicola Leali parried a stinging shot from Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, slotting home the decisive goal.
“It’s my job and the team’s job to win as many games as possible,” Højlund told DAZN after the match. “It’s just important to keep working hard, recovering, and focusing on the next match.”
The match was Napoli’s sixth in the league this season, and the three points pushed them to 15, level with Roma but ahead on goal difference. Napoli will stay top unless AC Milan secures a victory over Juventus later Sunday in Turin — a match with major implications for the title race.
Teenager Jeff Ekhator gave Genoa a surprise lead shortly before halftime, scoring his second Serie A goal and handing the visitors a shock advantage. But Napoli responded in the 57th minute when Anguissa bundled home an equalizer from close range, setting the stage for Højlund’s winner.
Napoli manager Antonio Conte admitted post-match that he had been considering substituting Højlund, who had started in midweek during a Champions League clash against Sporting Lisbon, in which he also scored twice.
“I think he asked me if I was tired and if I could keep playing, and I just said that I had good energy and I was still fresh,” Højlund said. “I said, ‘Yeah, just let me play.’”
Elsewhere in Serie A, Roma claimed their third consecutive league win with a 2-1 result at Fiorentina. Goals from Matias Soule and Bryan Cristante turned the game around after Moise Kean opened the scoring for Fiorentina with a thunderous strike in the 14th minute.
Kean, who netted his first goal of the campaign, nearly added another in the 38th minute but struck the post. Cristante’s header gave Roma the lead shortly before halftime. Fiorentina, meanwhile, came close to equalizing when Roberto Piccoli’s volley hit the crossbar in the 74th minute.
Despite flashes of attacking intent, Fiorentina remain winless with just three points from six games and sit one place above the relegation zone.
For Roma, the win was a welcome response to a disappointing Europa League loss to Lille, where Gian Piero Gasperini’s side missed three late penalties in a dramatic defeat.
With the title race tightening early in the season, all eyes will now turn to Sunday night’s marquee clash in Turin between AC Milan and Juventus, a match that could again shift the top of the Serie A standings.
