Insigne breaks drought with Napoli brace
Milan - A second-half brace from Lorenzo Insigne boosted Napoli's hopes of maintaining Champions League football next year in a 2-1 win at Udinese that pushed the southerners up to fourth at six points behind Juventus.
Juventus will take its lead over second-placed Roma to seven points with a win at home over struggling Pescara later.
But the focus on Saturday was stuttering Napoli's return among the top five after a six-game streak that featured only two wins, and three defeats.
Maurizio Sarri's men traveled north looking for their first Udinese win since 2007 and, amid a seven-month goal drought, Insigne looked the last player to get his name on the score sheet.
Playing in spite of a bout of flu amid injuries to striker Arkadiusz Milik and Manolo Gabbiadini, Insigne turned on the style in the second half to claim his maiden league goals of the season and his first since April.
Napoli was under pressure early on from towering Colombian Duvan Zapata, the on-loan Napoli man forcing Pepe Reina to save with his chest at the near post minutes after Emmanuel Badu had nodded wide for the hosts.
Insigne almost broke the deadlock on the half hour mark but Dries Mertens' rolled pass for the diminutive winger was intercepted by Silvan Widmer.
Insigne's luck changed two minutes after the restart when he found space on the edge of the box and promptly fired Jose Callejon's pinpoint delivery into the roof of the net.
Orestis Karnezis produced a fine finger-tipped save to push Insigne's drive over the bar and, when left unmarked 12 yards from goal, the Italy forward ballooned over.
Persistence paid off though and Insigne's double was complete on 57 minutes, beating Karnezis one-on-one after outfoxing Widmer.
Stipe Perica rose at a corner to send a powerful header past Reina only two minutes later but Napoli saw further chances as Insigne, Mertens and Emanuele Giaccherini kept the pressure applied until the final whistle.
Napoli returned to the Champions League group stage this season and hosts Dynamo Kyiv at the San Paolo stadium on Wednesday looking to boost its last 16 qualifying hopes.