Roma escaped their first Serie A defeat of the season after snatching a dramatic 3-3 draw against Napoli on Saturday evening, leaving the hosts in fresh disappointment despite coming close to victory.
The Diego Armando Maradona Stadium hosted the clash as part of the eighth round of Calcio, witnessing dramatic twists and turns between Gian Piero Gasperini’s side—chasing top spot—and Massimiliano Allegri’s squad, looking to regain their momentum.
André-Frank Zambo Anguissa opened the scoring for Napoli with a stunning bicycle kick in the 28th minute, before Scott McTominay extended the lead with a header in the 48th minute, leaving Roma trailing by two goals early in the second half.
However, the visitors refused to surrender. Matias Soulé halved the deficit in the 69th minute after a one-two combination with Donyell Malen, and substitute Leonardo Balerdi restored parity in the 74th minute by capitalizing on a loose ball inside the penalty area.
McTominay struck again to hand Napoli the advantage with a powerful shot in the 83rd minute, before Balerdi snatched the equalizer with a header in the 89th minute. VAR confirmed the validity of the goal despite protests from the home side over a potential foul, while Allegri was sent off for protesting during stoppage time.
With this result, Roma raised their points tally to 18 in third place—from five wins and three draws without defeat—placing them just one point behind leaders Inter Milan and second-placed Lazio (both on 19 points with a game in hand at the final whistle).
As for Napoli, they moved to 11 points in a temporary ninth place, eight points off the top, having settled for three wins, two draws, and three defeats. This latest setback follows their defeat against Venezia in the previous round, continuing a disappointing start relative to their fans’ ambitions.
Roma now faces a congested schedule, hosting Cagliari on Tuesday, October 27, before visiting Udinese on Saturday, October 31, ahead of facing Manchester United at Old Trafford on November 3 in the UEFA Champions League, presenting Gasperini with the challenge of maintaining competitiveness while managing player fatigue.
Conversely, Napoli embarks on three consecutive away fixtures: against Monza on Wednesday, October 28, then Juventus on Sunday, November 1, followed by an away European tie against Porto on November 4—a series of tests in which they need to translate periods of dominance into victories to return to contention.
