Lukaku and Kvaratskhelia score as Napoli outclass AC Milan to extend Serie A lead
Having not played a game for seven days after their weekend match against Bologna was postponed, it may have been expected that Milan would be making an explosive start to the game, however, it was the away side who raced into the lead.
With just five minutes gone, Romelu Lukaku had both the strength to barge his way past Strahinja Pavlovic and the poise to place his finish beyond Mike Maignan.
It was an ominous moment for the home side, as Napoli had not lost any of the last 50 matches in which they had taken the lead, but Yunus Musah flashed a shot wide before Samuel Chukwueze forced Alex Meret into a fine save from 30 yards out, as Paulo Fonseca’s men searched for a way back into the game.
Napoli sat back on their lead for large parts of the first half, but began to threaten a second shortly before the half-time break, and it would be a moment of Georgian magic that would double their lead.
There seemed little on when Khvicha Kvaratskhelia picked the ball up on the left wing, but the winger drove inside and unleashed an unstoppable shot into the bottom corner.
If the home fans were expecting a reaction to such an underwhelming first half, they got it within 60 seconds of the restart as Alvaro Morata rose to head home a Chukwueze cross, only for VAR to rule the goal out to the Spaniard being a fraction offside when the cross came in.
It would prove to be the closest to a comeback that the San Siro faithful would see, as the Napoli midfield took control of possession and controlled the game.
This was about as perfect a game as Antonio Conte would have wished his team to produce, as their proficiency in front of goal was matched by an excellent defensive performance.
His side kept a third consecutive clean sheet on the road, with Meret having to make an excellent save to push over a blistering strike from Rafael Leao in the closing stages of the game.
Although it was a first home defeat in eight home outings, it was a humbling defeat for the Rossoneri who remain outside of the European positions in the Serie A table.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Mathias Olivera (Napoli)