Gonzalo Higuain's penalty saw Napoli squeeze past Palermo 1-0 and maintain their pursuit of the Serie A title.
The Azzurri are three points behind reigning champions and current leaders Juventus with nine games remaining after former Real Madrid striker Higuain matched his career-best haul of 27 league goals in a season.
Walter Novellino's Palermo, meanwhile, are flirting with relegation as 18th-placed Frosinone are just one point behind them.
Roma remain an outside bet in the Serie A title race after beating Udinese 2-1 to register an eighth straight victory.
Luciano Spalletti has reinvigorated the Giallorossi since replacing Rudi Garcia as head coach and a bright start at the Stadio Friuli produced Edin Dzeko's opening goal.
Alessandro Florenzi made the points safe in the second half, with Bruno Fernandes' late consolation providing little comfort for under-fire Udinese boss Stefano Colantuono.
Ignazio Abate and Andrea Bertolacci were both denied by the crossbar within seconds as AC Milan were denied at Chievo as the match ended 0-0.
Defender Abate and midfielder Bertolacci struck the woodwork in quick succession 16 minutes from time at the Stadio Marc Antonio Bentegodi as Milan eventually had to make do with a 0-0 draw.
The visitors went into the game looking to close the gap on the top five by bouncing back from last weekend's 2-0 defeat at Sassuolo, but were ultimately frustrated in a tight and competitive encounter.
Fiorentina are all but out of the title race after Eros Pisano's late leveller saw Hellas Verona snatch a 1-1 draw in Florence.
The Tuscans were 14 points behind leaders Juventus heading into Sunday's game at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, and Mauro Zarate's first-half opener looked like sustaining their faint hopes of winning the Scudetto.
But Fiorentina failed to put the game to bed and, with four minutes remaining, were punished by right-back Pisano and his towering header.
Veteran striker Miroslav Klose fired Lazio to a 2-0 home victory over Atalanta that kept faint dreams of European football alive.
The visitors missed two chances before half-time, with Marco D'Alessandro hitting the post before Alejandro Gomez was denied by Federico Marchetti.
In the 67th minute, 37-year-old Klose scored his first Serie A goal of the season by tapping in after Stefano Mauri's attempt had been saved, and the German was celebrating again in stoppage time as he tucked Felipe Anderson's pass away.
Genoa recovered from going two goals down to pull well clear of the relegation zone with a 3-2 victory over Torino.
Ciro Immobile scored twice inside the opening 15 minutes to create an uphill battle for Genoa, but the Grifone would draw level before half-time.
A pair of penalties -- both converted by former Torino winger Alessio Cerci -- meant everything was to play for in the second half.
In the 66th minute Luca Rigoni turned the game on its head by heading Suso's free kick beyond Daniele Padelli.
Substitute Jonathan de Guzman fired Carpi to a vital 2-1 victory over relegation rivals Frosinone.
The Dutch midfielder dragged the promoted side to within two points of safety with his 90th-minute penalty at the Stadio Alberto Braglia.