Saturday 23 SeptemberLivorno 0-0 Milan
AC Milan's 100% start to the Serie A campaign came to an end on Saturday when they were held to a goalless draw by Livorno. Carlo Ancelotti's side picked up three wins in their first three games to quickly wipe out the eight-point deficit incurred following the match-fixing scandal, but could not keep up that pace in Leghorn. And there was more bad news for the Rossoneri just four minutes into the encounter, when inspirational skipper Paolo Maldini had to leave the field with an apparent knee problem.
Catania 2-2 Messina
The Sicilian derby between Catania and Messina ended in an action-packed 2-2 draw. Sergio Floccari gave Messina a first-half lead but then Catania turned the match on its head with two goals in three second-half minutes. Giuseppe Mascara was dismissed for taking his shirt off in celebration after equalising and then Gionatha Spinesi drilled Catania ahead with a well-worked free-kick. However, Messina quickly restored parity when Nicolas Andres Cordova levelled the match. Next Messina's former Italian international defender Mark Iuliano got his marching orders to leave both sides with 10 men.
Sunday 24 September
Inter 4-3 Chievo
Inter regained top spot in Serie A after a thrilling victory over Chievo at the San Siro on Sunday afternoon. Roberto Mancini's side were 4-0 up against the visitors and cruising to their third win of the season thanks to a brace from Hernan Crespo and a goal apiece from Walter Samuel and Dejan Stankovic. But a penalty from Sergio Pellissier and goals from Simone Tiribocchi and Matteo Brighi in the final 12 minutes meant that Inter had to hang on for a nervous victory.
Parma 0-4 Roma
Roma bounced back in emphatic fashion from their midweek defeat against Internazionale by securing a thumping victory on the road against struggling Parma. Vincenzo Montella got the ball rolling for the visitors to the Stadio Ennio Tardini with a goal inside the first 10 minutes, an advantage that was doubled on the stroke of half time by Simone Perrotta. Aleandro Rosi's first ever goal for the club made it three nine minutes into the second period, while Alberto Aquilani's injury time strike added insult to injury for Parma, who, with just one point from four games, avoid sitting bottom of the Serie A pile thanks only to the points penalties incurred by the clubs in the bottom three.
Empoli 2-0 Palermo
Palermo's stay at the top of Serie A is over after the Sicilians fell to a defeat at Empoli, who are putting together a solid start to the season themselves. After Palermo missed an early penalty, Luca Saudati opened the scoring for the Tuscan team in the first-half and victory was sealed by Sergio Almiron in the second half. Roberto Guana was sent off in the closing stages for Palermo.
Lazio 1-0 Atalanta
Lazio won their second game of the season thanks to a strike from former defender Sebastiano Siviglia against his former club Atalanta.They followed up the midweek win over Chievo by overcoming a resilient Atalanta, for whom defeat was their first since being promoted from Serie B last season.
Ascoli 1-1 Sampdoria
Sampdoria came from behind to claim a point against Ascoli and leave both teams still searching for their first Serie A win of the season. Marco Delvecchio's 15th minute strike was cancelled out by a Gennaro Delvecchio strike in the second-half of a fiery encounter, which saw six players booked and Samp's Giulio Falcone sent off.
Reggina 1-1 Torino
Reggina's unproductive start to the new Serie A season continued with a home draw against newly-promoted Torino. Having been handed a 15-point penalty after the recent match-fixing scandal, a good start was vital to the side from Reggio de Calabria. But it has not panned out that way. Walter Mazzarri's men have shaved just four points off their deficit and are already 12 points adrift of safety. Hopes were raised that they might register their second win of the campaign when Francesco Modesto put them in front 10 minutes into the second half. But Gianluca Comotto's leveller 10 minutes later enabled the visitors to escape with their second point of the campaign.
Siena 0-0 Cagliari
Ten-man Siena held on for a home draw with Cagliari to maintain their solid start to the season. The team from Tuscany now have a haul of seven points from their first four matches and, helped by points deductions for other clubs, that is a good start in their objective to secure another season with the elite. They shut out the Cagliari attack even after Daniele Portanova was dismissed after 64 minutes.
Fiorentina could not manage back-to-back wins as they attempt to overcome their early-season points handicap after being downed by Udinese. The Viola's 1-0 win over Parma in midweek made only a small dent in the 19-point penalty imposed for their part in the match-fixing scandal and Vincenzo Iaquinta's first-half goal ensured they remain firmly rooted to the foot of Serie A. While defeat was Fiorentina's third in their four games so far this season, Udinese's second win of the campaign moves them up to sixth, three points off the summit.
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