The outcome put a stop to Inter's run of ten straight Serie A wins, and after 29 games, they lead the standings with 76 points, 14 ahead of AC Milan in second place. Napoli, with 45 points, is ranked sixth. Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret denied Lautaro Martinez on the follow-up after stopping a diving header from Darmian, giving Inter many early opportunities. Due to a muscular issue, Napoli's star striker Victor Osimhen was unable to play, and they struggled offensively against Inter's strong defense.

Two minutes before halftime, Alessandro Bastoni sent a cross into the box, and an unmarked Darmian scored first for Inter, breaking the scoreless draw. Despite having the better of the majority of the game, Inter's typically impenetrable defense let them down in the 81st minute when a Napoli corner was deflected to an unguarded Jesus, who headed in the equalizer to split the points.