Under-fire Napoli boss Rudi Garcia needed his side to bounce back from a 3-1 loss to Fiorentina, and after peppering the Verona goal in the early stages, the Partenopei had the lead.
A lofted cross from Giacomo Raspadori dropped at the feet of Matteo Politano at the back post, allowing the 30-year-old to fire home into the bottom corner.
Averaging under a goal a game, the Gialloblu had their work cut out to get back into the contest, and a second goal for their visitors before the break left the home support deflated. Picked out by Politano, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia brilliantly found a yard of space to drive a low shot past Lorenzo Montipo for just his second goal of the campaign.
Needing a marked improvement, Verona started the second period positively, yet that was all in vain as Kvaratskhelia seemingly sealed the points 10 minutes after the restart.
An advantage from referee Rosario Abisso allowed the Georgia international to race through on goal before confidently cutting back and picking his spot with aplomb.
Undeterred, the hosts pulled one back on the hour mark after a defensive mix-up presented Darko Lazovic with the chance to lash home an unlikely goal, setting up an interesting finale.
Marco Baroni’s side pushed hard for a way back into the match but ultimately came up short thanks in no small part to Alex Meret between the sticks.
Napoli’s first-half dominance proved vital as they saw out an uncomfortable end to the contest, claiming all three points and cutting the gap to the top of the Serie A table to four points, at least for the time being.
Meanwhile, sat in 16th and now seven league games with a win (D2, L5), last season’s relegation play-off winners Verona will already be looking over their shoulder.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Matteo Politano (Napoli)
