AC Milan went top of Serie A for the first time in four years after a late own-goal by Argentine forward German Denis gave them a 1-0 victory against 10-man Napoli at the San Siro on Sunday.
Udinese are a point behind in second after fighting back for a 2-2 draw at home to Genoa while Inter, who beat Reggina 3-2 on Saturday, are third with Napoli dropping to fourth.
The defeat was harsh on visitors Napoli who had Cristian Maggio dismissed and deserved more for a performance full of heart and belief.
But Milan midfielder Clarence Seedorf said it was good to finally be back on top for the first time since May 2004, when Milan last won the scudetto.
“It’s been a bit too long since we were top, we’ve been under pressure for a long time but now we’re top,” he said.
Napoli’s hopes suffered a massive blow just before the break, though, when Maggio was sent off for a second booking.
It meant the visitors would have to play the entire second period a man down and coach Edy Reja sacrificed attacking Slovakia midfielder Marek Hamsik in favor of defender Salvatore Aronica.
As expected Milan dominated play after the break and Marco Borriello twice came close in quick succession before Kaka shuddered the post with a rasping shot on 72 minutes.
And moments later substitute Pato missed a header from four yards out after he was left completely unmarked at a free-kick.
The hosts were piling on the pressure and a deflected shot from Kaka just missed the far post.
Six minutes from time the referee made a shocking decision awarding a penalty to Milan for a handball against Michele Pazienza that was both outside the area and totally involuntary from a ball fired at him from close range.
Justice was done as Gennaro Iezzo brilliantly saved Kaka’s penalty but only a minute later Denis flicked a Ronaldinho free-kick past Iezzo to break Neapolitan hearts.
In Udine, the hosts got off to a great start after just four minutes as Gaetano D’Agostino scored from the spot.
Genoa were level on 64 minutes as Diego Milito scored from the spot after a soft penalty given against Aleksander Lukovic when he tangled with Anthony Vanden Borre. Three minutes later a classy finish by substitute Giuseppe Sculli put the visitors in front.
But Italy striker Fabio Quagliarella restored parity by flicking home a cross from Simone Pepe.
In other games Fiorentina failed to move into the top three as they lost 1-0 at Siena.
Lazio are just two points off top in fourth now after they beat Catania 1-0 at home courtesy of a Pasquale Foggia strike five minutes from time.
Cagliari continued their resurgence as they came back from a goal down to beat Bologna 5-1 at home.
RECORD DEFEAT: The Shanghai-based ‘Oriental Sports Daily’ said the drubbing was so disastrous, and taste so bitter, that all that is left is ‘numbness’ Chinese soccer fans and media rounded on the national team yesterday after they experienced fresh humiliation in a 7-0 thrashing to rivals Japan in their opening Group C match in the third phase of Asian qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The humiliation in Saitama on Thursday against Asia’s top-ranked team was China’s worst defeat in World Cup qualifying and only a goal short of their record 8-0 loss to Brazil in 2012. Chinese President Xi Jinping once said he wanted China to host and even win the World Cup one day, but that ambition looked further away than ever after a
‘KHELIFMANIA’: In the weeks since the Algerian boxer won gold in Paris, national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women In the weeks since Algeria’s Imane Khelif won an Olympic gold medal in women’s boxing, athletes and coaches in the North African nation say national enthusiasm is inspiring newfound interest in the sport, particularly among women. Khelif’s image is practically everywhere, featured in advertisements at airports, on highway billboards and in boxing gyms. The 25-year-old welterweight’s success in Paris has vaulted her to national hero status, especially after Algerians rallied behind her in the face of uninformed speculation about her gender and eligibility to compete. Amateur boxer Zougar Amina, a medical student who has been practicing for a year, called Khelif an
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
GOING GLOBAL: The regular season fixture is part of the football league’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the sport to international destinations The US National Football League (NFL) breaks new ground in its global expansion strategy tomorrow when the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers face off in the first-ever grid-iron game staged in Brazil. For one night only, the land of Pele and ‘The Beautiful Game’ will get a rare glimpse into the bone-crunching world of American football as the Packers and Eagles collide at Sao Paulo’s Neo Quimica Arena, the 46,000-seat home of soccer club Corinthians. The regular season fixture is part of the NFL’s increasingly ambitious plans to spread the US’ most popular sport to new territories following previous international fixtures
RSS