Higuain hits double figures as Napoli goes top
Gonzalo Higuain hit his 10th goal of the campaign to take the lead in Serie A's scoring charts on Sunday as Napoli went provisionally top of the pile thanks to a 2-0 win at struggling Hellas Verona.
Higuain was expected to start on the bench for Sunday's trip to the Bentegodi stadium after coach Maurizio Sarri claimed the Argentina striker had returned "fatigued" from international duty in midweek.
But Higuain shook off the effects of his cross-Atlantic trip to bundle home from close range to double the visitors lead after Lorenzo Insigne had broken the deadlock on 67 minutes.
Insigne struck his seventh goal of the campaign when he collected Marek Hamsik's rolled pass across the edge of the area to beat Rafael with a low strike that went in off the far post.
Verona fans were given brief hope when evergreen striker Luca Toni came off the bench to end his two-month injury absence, but moments later Higuain struck to virtually seal the points.
The result sent Napoli top of Serie A on 28 points, tied with Fiorentina on 28 points but leading on goal difference. Inter could leapfrog into first with a win over Frosinone later Sunday.
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