Napoli clinch first Serie A title in 33 years after draw with Udinese

Napoli won their first Italian Serie A title in 33 years, clinching the Scudetto on Thursday with a 1-1 draw at Udinese.Needing only a draw to take an unassailable 16-point lead with five games remaining, Serie A’s top scorer, Victor Osimhen, equalised for Napoli in the 52nd minute to spark wild celebrations throughout Naples, inside the stadium in Udine and beyond.

The title is Napoli’s third in Italy’s top division and their first since the legendary Argentine player Diego Maradona led them to championships in 1987 and 1990. Napoli’s home stadium was renamed in Maradona’s honour following his death in November 2020.Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti said the impact of Maradona was “felt in this success.”

“Napoli, this is for you,” he added. “There are people here who will be able to get through difficult moments in their lives because they remember this moment. These people deserve all the joy.”

Napoli could have sealed the title at home on Sunday but conceded a late equaliser to Salernitana to extend the wait four more days. They went into Thursday’s game knowing a point would be enough, even after nearest challengers Lazio beat Sassuolo a day earlier.

Besides the 11,000 Napoli fans inside and 5,000 more outside the stadium in Udine in northern Italy, a capacity crowd of more than 50,000 watched the match on jumbo screens at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples.

(ESPN)