Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain scored twice to help his side to a 2-1 win over title rivals Inter at the San Paolo on Monday night.
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The Argentinian has now scored 12 goals in Serie A so far this season, and his heroics helped Maurizio Sarri’s side move to the top of the table after moving a point ahead of the Nerazzurri.
It took the home side less than a minute to find the breakthrough, as Higuain took advantage of some sloppy defending to produce an emphatic finish past Samir Handanovic.
Roberto Mancini’s night got worse just before the interval with Yuto Nagatomo picking up his second yellow card of the game, while Higuain wasted little time after the restart to double his side’s lead.
However, Adem Ljajic struck just after the hour mark to give Inter hope and his goal undoubtedly created some nervousness for the hosts who lost their footing in the game temporarily.
It looked as though they had thrown their lead away as Stevan Jovetic hit the post in injury time before Pepe Reina made a spectacular save with almost the last touch of the game to deny the visitors a point.
Napoli were able to hold on for the victory which sees them go clear at the top of the table as they extended their unbeaten record in all competitions to 18 games.
Sarri will hope to make that 19 when his side take on Bologna on Sunday, while Mancini will be looking for a positive reaction from his players when they host Genoa.
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