April 2 (Reuters) - Champions Napoli host AC Milan this Easter weekend with both sensing opportunity after leaders Inter Milan's momentum stalled, as Serie A returns from an international break that cast a dark shadow over Italian football.
Italy failed to qualify for a third straight World Cup finals, losing Tuesday's playoff with Bosnia on penalties, with pressure now mounting on federation president Gabriele Gravina to resign.
Napoli boss Antonio Conte and Milan manager Massimiliano Allegri are also in the headlines as two of the names tipped to take over should Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso step aside, but for now the Scudetto battle takes centre stage.
Not long ago, the title race appeared all but settled. Inter held a 10-point cushion over neighbours Milan, with Napoli floundering four points further back, but the league leaders have begun to stumble with the finishing line in sight.
A derby defeat brought an end to Inter's 15-game unbeaten league run and Cristian Chivu's side followed that loss with two draws to give the two chasing teams reason to believe.
Milan failed to take full advantage of Inter's drop-off, suffering a loss to Lazio, but a win over Torino last time out leaves Allegri's team six points off the top with eight games remaining.
Napoli, on a four-game winning streak, are seven points behind the leaders, and victory over Milan on Monday would reignite their hopes of successfully defending their title, especially if Inter were to slip up at home to AS Roma on Sunday.
LUKAKU NO SHOW
Conte's Napoli also had a turbulent international break amid a stand-off with Belgium striker Romelu Lukaku.
Lukaku failed to show up for training after withdrawing from the national squad, preferring to stay in Belgium for treatment and the club are considering disciplinary action on the player who has missed most of the season through injury.
The 32-year-old has scored one goal since his return in January. He has made five substitute appearances in the league this season, totalling 40 minutes on the pitch, so his absence will not be a major headache for Conte.
Milan beat Napoli 2-1 at the San Siro earlier this season, and whichever side comes out on top this time around will be viewed as Inter's main rival for the season run-in, while a draw would serve neither team.
ITALY LOSS LINGERS
Inter and Roma both have players needing to reset after Italy's loss, with Inter striker Pio Esposito and Roma midfielder Bryan Cristante missing penalties in the shootout.
Inter defender Alessandro Bastoni's red card in the first half was a turning point in that game, with his club teammates Nicolo Barella, Federico Dimarco and Davide Frattesi also involved along with Roma defender Gianluca Mancini.
Roma spent the early part of the season challenging for the title but are now battling to stay in contention for a Champions League spot.
Gian Piero Gasperini's side are sixth in the standings, three off fourth-placed Como who visit Udinese on Monday.
(Reporting by Trevor StynesEditing by Toby Davis)
