McTominay fires Napoli second in Serie A in Sardinia

Scott McTominay scored the only goal after just two minutes as Napoli moved second in Serie A on Friday with a 1-0 win at Cagliari.

Antonio Conte’s side closed to within six points of Inter Milan, before the league leaders play at Fiorentina on Sunday.

Napoli are two points clear of third-placed AC Milan, who play at home against Torino on Saturday.

“Today we’ve put a bit of pressure on the teams at the top,” Conte told DAZN.

“Three points further into the Champions League spots, we’ve been extraordinary over the last seven months to stay in the top positions.”

Scotland midfield McTominay was starting his first match since February 7 after a tendon problem but tapped the ball into the empty net after it had bounced between goalkeeper Elia Caprile’s legs.

Conte could also count on the return of Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne who started for Napoli for the first time since being forced off with a leg injury on October 25 against Inter.

“Obviously having some players back is important, but what counts is them being at 100 percent,” Conte said.

“(Andre-Frank) Anguissa and McTominay aren’t ‘brilliant’ again yet, Kevin I thought was doing well.”

Cagliari’s Sebastiano Esposito fired wide as the hosts missed the chance to level after 20 minutes with Napoli’s Leonardo Spinazzola also clearing the ball off the line to prevent a late equaliser before the final whistle.

Napoli created numerous chances but failed to convert them as they held their narrow advantage until the end against the 15th-placed Sardinian side.

Elsewhere on Friday, Udinese climbed to 10th with a 2-0 win over Genoa with second-half goals by Jurgen Ekkelenkamp and Keinan Davis.