Milan, 14 Mar. (LaPresse) – A harder-fought comeback victory than expected for Napoli, 2-1 against Lecce, in the early kick-off of the 29th round of Serie A. Three crucial points for Conte’s side, who consolidate their third place in the table with 59 points, one point behind second-placed Milan, who face Lazio in Rome tomorrow. It is the third consecutive victory for the Azzurri, who have welcomed back some of their best players for this final stretch of the season. Lecce are left with a bitter taste in their mouths, suffering their 16th defeat of the season and now risk being dragged back into the relegation zone. Napoli welcomed Anguissa back into the starting line-up, whilst De Bruyne and McTominay started on the bench. The start was an immediate cold shower for the Azzurri, who found themselves a goal down after just three minutes. Lecce took the lead with a fine header from Siebert following a corner taken by Gallo. Caught off guard, Napoli struggled to react and, after fifteen minutes, risked conceding again, with the Salentini coming close to doubling their lead first through Banda and then through Thiago Gabriel. Conte seethes with anger on the bench and tries to rouse his players, but apart from a half-hearted right-footed effort from Gilmour in the centre of the box, the Azzurri fail to trouble the alert Lecce defence. Alisson Santos seems to be the only one on form, but he is poorly served and poorly supported by his teammates. Towards the end of the half, after another chance for Lecce through Stulic, Napoli had their first real opportunity as Politano struck the side netting from outside the box. It was the spark they needed, which came to fruition early in the second half when, in the 46th minute, Hoijlund made it 1-1 following an assist from Politano, who had been well played in by Gilmour into space. Lecce’s defence were caught off guard. With the introduction of De Bruyne and McTominay, Napoli stepped up a gear and poured forward in search of the lead. It was from a pass by the Belgian that Alison Santos had a chance, forcing the Lecce goalkeeper into a save with a diagonal shot. A Napoli goal was in the air and arrived deservedly in the 67th minute, scored by Politano with a fine left-footed volley in a scramble following a corner. The comeback was complete. In the closing stages, there were moments of concern when Lecce player Banda suddenly fell ill and collapsed to the ground around the 90th minute. The Lecce medical staff rushed onto the pitch immediately; fortunately, after a few minutes, the player regained consciousness and was carried off the pitch on a stretcher.