Football
PA Sport 9y

Juventus held at Udinese, Inter beaten by Sassuolo in Serie A

Juventus missed the chance to pull nine points clear of Roma at the top of Serie A as they were held to a 0-0 draw at Udinese.

The reigning champions created the better opportunities in a battle between two sets of Bianconeri in Friuli, but Carlos Tevez, Fernando Llorente and Alvaro Morata all suffered off-days in front of goal.

Second-placed Scudetto challengers Roma had laboured to a 1-1 draw with Empoli on Saturday night, so the single point taken edged Massimiliano Allegri's Juve into a respectable seven-point lead.

The visitors did not play at their incisive best during the first half but they enjoyed the better chances.

Jeremy Menez scored twice and set up a third goal as AC Milan beat Parma 3-1 to climb to eighth place in the Serie A table.

The former Paris Saint-Germain forward saw his early penalty cancelled out by Milan loanee Antonio Nocerino, who has recently swapped San Siro for a relegation dogfight with basement boys Parma.

Menez restored the lead for Filippo Inzaghi's side just before the hour and former Parma defender Cristian Zaccardo wrapped up the scoring to condemn the Gialloblu to an eighth straight away defeat.

The victory snaps a run of five league games without a win for Milan and boosts them to within five points of fourth-placed Lazio, who occupy the final Europa League berth.

Sassuolo climbed above Inter Milan with a 3-1 win.

Simone Zaza and Nicola Sansone established a two-goal lead in a one-sided first half and although Mauri Icardi pulled a goal back in an improved second-half performance from Inter, a Domenico Berardi penalty sealed Sassuolo's victory.

Both teams ended the game with 10 men with Sansone and Isaac Donkor sent off, but the greater damage for Inter was their second straight Serie A defeat.

Manolo Gabbiadini scored the winner as Napoli edged Chievo 2-1 in Verona to cement their grip on third place.

The game was level at 1-1 after each team benefited from own goals. Napoli took the lead when the ball ricocheted off Chievo defender Bostjan Cesar and went into the back of the net in the 18th minute.

Just seven minutes later and the Flying Donkeys were back on level terms, when, from a corner, Napoli goalkeeper Rafael punched the ball into the back of teammate Miguel Angel Britos and it bounced into the net.

Gabbiadini put Napoli in front in the 62nd minute -- his first goal since joining the team from Sampdoria last month -- and Napoli held on to clinch three vital points in their battle for Champions League football next season.

The victory, Napoli's third consecutive in Serie A, has allowed Rafa Benitez's side to climb five points clear of closest rivals Lazio and Sampdoria. Moreover, Napoli closed the gap on second-place Roma to four points. Chievo failed to get their first win in 2015 and remain in the relegation zone.

Cesena caused an upset on Sunday after beating Lazio 2-1 at home to win two games in a row for the first time this season.

The hosts, who had beaten Parma 2-1 last time out to halt an 18-match winless run in the league, went ahead thanks to Gregoire Defrel's 60th-minute strike before doubling their lead through Danilo Cataldi's own goal with 13 minutes remaining.

German forward Miroslav Klose handed Lazio a lifeline three minutes from time but the visitors could not find an equaliser and lost for the seventh time this season.

Fabio Quagliarella scored a hat trick as Torino spoiled Samuel Eto'o's Sampdoria debut with a stunning 5-1 win over the high-flying visitors in Turin.

The Italy forward scored twice in the opening half-hour to put the hosts on their way before completing his treble in the 65th minute to make it 3-0.

Eto'o, who joined Samp from Everton on a three-and-a-half year deal during the week, came on in the 71st minute but Toro remained in full control.

Substitute Cavalho Amauri added a fourth in the 75th minute and, although Pedro Obiang pulled a goal back for Samp two minutes later, Bruno Peres wrapped up a resounding victory deep in stoppage time as Toro made it three wins in a row.

The triumph lifted Torino, who are unbeaten since Nov. 30, up to 11th place, while fifth-placed Samp slipped five points behind third-placed Napoli after suffering only their third defeat of the season.

Palermo came from behind to beat Hellas Verona 2-1 at the Stadio Renzo Barbera and climb to seventh place.

Panagiotis Tachtsidis gave 14th-placed Verona the lead with a header inside eight minutes but Palermo's in-form striker Paulo Dybala's exquisite finish ensured the scores were level at half-time.

The promoted Sicilians pushed hard for a winner throughout the second half and were ultimately rewarded 11 minutes from time as substitute Andrea Belotti converted Franco Vazquez's cross.

The victory boosts Giuseppe Iachini's men to within four points of the final Europa League berth after 21 games of the season.

A spectacular Mauricio Pinilla strike earned Atalanta a late 2-1 win over Cagliari, pulling them away from the relegation zone and leaving the Sardinians in the thick of the danger.

Giuseppe Biava gave the hosts the lead in the 18th minute, only for Daniele Dessena to level just before half-time for Gianfranco Zola's men.

Both sides had chances in a game which seemed nothing like a relegation battle, but it was not until the fifth minute of stoppage time when former Cagliari forward Pinilla netted a stunning winner.

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