Juventus can be satisfied with the point gained from their trip to Napoli on Sunday night, according to Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini.

Speaking after the game, Chiellini acknowledged the Bianconeri had not been at their best at the Stadio San Paolo, but pointed to Juventus’ six-point lead over Roma as the most important thing to take from the evening.

“With all due respect for our opponents, we’re just focusing on ourselves – on winning the league title,” said Chiellini. “We’re a mature side and we knew how important it was to get something from tonight. We have eight games left now so our destiny is in our own hands.

“We know it wasn’t our best performance of the year, but we’re an intelligent, practical team and we showed our strength tonight. Perhaps we could have kept hold of the ball more and used the counter better, but it’s worth remembering that we didn’t allow Napoli many chances – they have the best attack in the league and are very strong at home. Now we focus on getting through the Coppa Italia semi-final here on Wednesday.”

Chiellini praised the performance of Juventus’ midfield in Naples.

“The five in midfield were very impressive tonight,” he said. “They let virtually no balls through against a team like Napoli, who press you hard. You have to be objective about these things. We could have done a bit more, but we were lacking a very important player in [Paulo] Dybala, who can make things happen. It was a good game, but the most important thing is the result.”

The defender also spoke of his satisfaction at the way the spectacle had been observed at the San Paolo.

“This was the calmest Napoli v Juve of the last 12 years, since I joined Juventus,” he said. “You have to say well done to the authorities and the Napoli fans, who supported their team. There were a few boos, but it was done in good humour. It was just a football match tonight – and that’s the way it should be.”

The Bianconeri came away with a point from Sunday night’s Serie A contest after playing out a 1-1 draw against Napoli at the San Paolo.

Sami Khedira it was to hand Juve an early, seventh-minute lead in some style too following neat link-up play with birthday boy Miralem Pjanic before firing home his fifth goal of the season.

Napoli, however, took the game to the Bianconeri throughout and earned their equaliser after an hour when Marek Hamsik fired into Gianluigi Buffon’s top corner from close range.

The result leaves Juve six points clear of second-placed Roma while Napoli remain ten points off the pace in third.

The Partenopei, as expected, piled on the pressure with some early possession in advanced areas, but Juve held firm and duly did the damage with a perfectly executed counter-attack after scarcely seven minutes.

Khedira and Pjanic exchanged passes on the edge of the area with the former smashing powerfully past Rafael and into the bottom corner – the perfect start in a match of such magnitude.

Gonzalo Higuain – playing for the first time in Naples since joining Juve in the summer – showed a great piece of skill on the quarter-hour, turning his marker by the corner flag and sending in a dangerous cross into the box, but Kalidou Koulibaly cleared his lines.

Keen to get back on level terms quickly, Napoli upped the tempo again and threatened Buffon’s goal a couple of times when Hamsik saw his drive deflected out for a corner before Giorgio Chiellini wheeled back to nod Jose Callejon’s cross over the bar while under pressure from Dries Mertens.

And the hosts kept up their chase for an equaliser right up until half-time, Hamsik skewing a shot off target before Lorenzo Insigne cut into the box and bent an effort just inches wide of Buffon’s far post.

Mario Lemina, enjoying a great first Juventus start since early December, injected more energy into the match immediately after the interval when he burst forwards to receive Higuain’s pass and helped himself to a shot that flew a few feet off target.

Down the other end, Insigne curled wide again before Callejon bundled into the net only to be correctly flagged offside.

By the 60th minute, however, Napoli were level when Hamsik received Mertens’ ball before slotting coolly into the top corner and, just three minutes later, Mertens very nearly scored his side’s second after dispossessing Buffon and striking the outside of the post from the acutest of angles.

Ultimately, neither team did quite enough late on to clinch a winner and, on the balance of play, a draw was a fair result here.

Now attentions turn quickly to Wednesday night’s ‘rematch’ at the San Paolo with a place in the Coppa Italia final at stake.

The dress rehearsal is over…