Soccer-McTominay scores early as Napoli beat Como to extend Serie A lead


Soccer Football - Serie A - Napoli v Como - Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Naples, Italy - October 4, 2024 Napoli's Scott McTominay in action with Como's Ignace van der Brempt REUTERS/Ciro De Luca

NAPLES, Italy (Reuters) -Napoli's Scott McTominay scored after 25 seconds and Romelu Lukaku and David Neres were also on target as they beat visitors Como 3-1 in Serie A on Friday to extend their lead at the top of Serie A.

Antonio Conte's Napoli top the table with 16 points after seven matches, four ahead of Juventus, who host Cagliari on Sunday.

McTominay broke the deadlock seconds into the match when he fired the ball into the net off the post from inside the box after being teed up by a pass from Lukaku.

Como created multiple opportunities, with Nico Paz firing a powerful long-distance shot that struck the inside of the post before deflecting away to safety.

They equalised through Gabriel Strefezza's low, long-range strike that sailed through a crowded box into the bottom left corner two minutes before the break.

Lukaku restored the hosts' lead from the penalty spot eight minutes into the second half after Sergi Roberto brought down Mathias Olivera.

Neres scored Napoli's third in the 86th minute when he latched on to a through ball from Lukaku and converted a one-on-one chance to dash the visitors' hopes of earning a draw.

Napoli forward Lukaku, who has battled to regain match fitness after joining the club in late August, delivered an impressive performance with one goal and two assists.

"I arrived late, but I'm already integrated, all thanks to my teammates, the technical staff and the fans. We have to continue like this, we've won again," Lukaku, who will miss Belgium's upcoming Nations League matches to continue working at Napoli, told Sky Sport Italia.

"Now we all go to the national team and then those of us who remain here will continue to work and prepare for the next games."

Lukaku, who has three goals and four assists in five matches for Napoli this season, admitted the game was far from perfect.

"We also had moments in which, on the counterattack, we could have done better, but we have to review these situations to improve in the future," he said.

(Reporting by Tommy Lund in GdanskEditing by Toby Davis)

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