Inter down AC Milan to extend Serie A lead

ROME: Inter Milan added another two points to its advantage over second-placed AC Milan on the Serie A table after a 1-0 away victory over Bologna, while Juventus was neutralized by Torino 2-2 in the Turin Derby.

Having claimed eight wins in a row, Inter Milan broke the deadlock in the 30th minute as Alessandro Bastoni rolled across from the left, Romelu Lukaku's header was denied, but the Belgian followed up to easily tap in near the goal-line. Inter almost doubled the lead in the 50th minute, but Lautaro Martinez's missile cannoned off the upright.

With a game in hand, Inter is on 68 points, sitting eight points clear of AC Milan who drew with Sampdoria 1-1 at the San Siro.

It was Jens Petter Hauge that saved Milan from a home defeat. After a goalless first-half, the away side broke the deadlock in the 56th minute as Milan left-back Theo Hernandez's awful square pass in his own half was intercepted by veteran Fabio Quagliarella who floated the ball into the net from 30 meters out.

But Sampdoria was reduced to 10 men two minutes later as Adrien Silva was sent off after collecting his second yellow card.

In a desperate bid to avoid a home defeat, Milan poured forward and it paid off in the 87th minute when Hauge gathered from Franck Kessie, shaking off the defenders to finish with a curler.

The Rossoneri had the chance to score the last-gasp winner but Kessie saw his deflected attempt rebound off the woodwork.

Juve's lackluster run continued as they played out a 2-2 draw in the Derby della Mole with Cristiano Ronaldo bagging his 24th league goal.

Juve had a string of absentees as Leonardo Bonucci and Merih Demiral tested positive for COVID-19, Gianluigi Buffon was suspended, and Weston McKennie, Paulo Dybala, and Arthur Melo were banned by the club as the trio reportedly broke the anti-pandemic rules to organize a party at home.

The Old Lady had a strong start as Federico Chiesa found the net in the 13th minute after a give-and-go with Alvaro Morata, before Torino scored the equalizer when Wojciech Szczesny parried Rolando Mandragora's rocket but could do nothing to stop Antonio Sanabria's follow-up.

Juve was stunned seconds after the break, as Dejan Kulusevski's wayward back-pass allowed Sanabria to surge forward, the Paraguayan then beat Szczesny again from a tight angle.

Juve started to lay siege on the home side, and Ronald finally headed in on Giorgio Chiellini's assist. The goal was disallowed at first, but the referee corrected it after checking the VAR.

Juve now ranks fourth with 56 points and will host Napoli in a rescheduled fixture on April 7.

The two Rome-based teams shared different fates as Lazio beat Spezia 2-1, but Manuel Lazzari and Joaquin Correa were both sent off in the stoppages time, while Roma fumbled the lead twice and only picked up one point in a 2-2 draw with Sassuolo.

Napoli registered its fourth consecutive win by dispatching Crotone 4-3 on home turf. The Partenopei established a 3-1 cushion before the break, but the bottom-placed Crotone got back on level terms just 13 minutes into the second half. Giovanni Di Lorenz was the difference-maker for Napoli as the Italian international cut inside to score the winner.

Also on Saturday, Atalanta scraped past Udinese 3-2, Hellas won 2-0 away to Cagliari, Benevento drew with Parma 2-2, Genoa shared spoils with Fiorentina 1-1 while the Viola's Franck Ribery was red-carded. Agencies

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