Serie A | Napoli snatch late draw against Inter to keep title race bubbling

Naples: Napoli substitute Philip Billing rescued a deserved 1-1 draw at home to Serie A leaders Inter Milan on Saturday, leaving the title rivals separated by a point at the top of the table.

Federico Dimarco put defending champions Inter ahead in the 22nd minute with a superb free kick to silence the capacity crowd but Danish midfielder Billing was the hero of Naples, coming off the bench to equalise in the 87th minute.

Inter have 58 points with Napoli on 57, two ahead of Atalanta who were held to a 0-0 draw by Venezia on Saturday.

After a nervy, scrappy start from both sides at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, with the game repeatedly interrupted as players received treatment, it was only fitting that the opening goal came from a set-piece.

Dimarco curled his free kick around the wall and inside the far post. Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret could only look on as the ball nestled in the corner of the net and the game finally erupted into life.

Once Napoli absorbed the sucker-punch, they began to push forward in search of an equaliser. A long pass was met first time by striker Romelu Lukaku but his effort smashed into the side netting.

Seconds later Giacomo Raspadori's first touch took him past Inter keeper Josep Martinez wide in the area but his second was too heavy and the ball rolled wide with Lukaku waiting in the middle of the area.

Just before the break Raspadori managed to get the ball into a dangerous position but Lukaku's strike from the edge of the six-yard box was blocked by Alessandro Bastoni and Inter held their lead going into the interval.

Napoli were camped out in the Inter area for much of the second half, forcing corner after corner. Stanislav Lobotka fired over from the edge of the area after a one-two with Lukaku.

Scott McTominay then had a powerful strike parried away by Martinez, while an Inter counter-attack needed Meret to come well out of his area and clear the danger with Denzel Dumfries bearing down on the Napoli goal.

Napoli were looking to put a dismal February behind them where a run of three draws and one defeat had allowed Inter to steal top spot, but they looked set to slip further behind until manager Antonio Conte sprang Billing from the bench.

The Dane, signed on loan from Bournemouth in January, made his Napoli debut in last weekend's defeat at Como but needed just eight minutes to make his mark against Inter.

Played in by Lobotka, Billing's first effort was saved by the leg of Martinez but he poked home the rebound to keep Napoli's title hopes very much alive.