Simone Inzaghi put Inter's last-gasp draw with Napoli down to injuries.

A late Philip Billing goal saw Napoli rescue a 1-1 draw at home to Serie A title rivals Inter, keeping the teams separated by just a point.

Federico Dimarco put defending champions Inter ahead with a stunning free-kick in the 22nd minute at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

Inter went into the clash without Yann Sommer, Matteo Darmian, Carlos Augusto and Nicola Zalewski, and were then forced to take off Dimarco and Hakan Calhanoglu early in the second half. 

"Definitely. We were already in an emergency, Dimarco and Calhanoglu asked for a substitution after the first half," Inzaghi replied when asked if the injuries impacted his team's performance.

"They tried to hold on a little, but they couldn't run well. It's a moment like this for injuries, the guys did their best against an excellent team that grew a lot in the second half.

"We'll take the draw. For the equalising goal we could have done better, we will review and analyse."

Inter conceded seven minutes after Inzaghi replaced defender Alessandro Bastoni.

However, this was a tactical change.

"Bastoni did not ask for a change. With the entry of Billing they added centimetres," Inzaghi said.

"I put in Stefan de Vrij and had to choose between taking off Bastoni or Francesco Acerbi. Bastoni is fine, but we have difficulties in that area."

Inter and Napoli have now drawn both of their league meetings this term, making it the first time they have shared the points in both of their fixtures since 2017-18.

However, Atalanta missed the chance to close ground on the pair after a 0-0 draw with Venezia.

"We are all there, it is an open championship. Lazio and Juventus can also get back into it, but I'm confident," Inzaghi said.