Serie A - Week 10: Sunday Review

AC Milan are the new leaders in Serie A after Napoli's German Denis put through an own goal three minutes from time to lift the Rossoneri one point above Inter and Udinese, the latter held 2-2 by Genoa. Elsewhere Lazio beat Catania, but Fiorentina lost the Tuscan derby.

AC MILAN 1-0 NAPOLI
German Denis scored a late own goal to deny 10-man Napoli a point and send AC Milan to the top of Serie A for the first time since May 2004 - the last time the Scudetto went to the Rossoneri half of Milano. The visitors, who started the weekend joint top, matched the home side for the opening 44 minutes but saw the momentum swing in Milan's favour when Christian Maggio was sent off. Carlo Ancelotti's side dominated the second half but looked as though they had squandered the chance to climb to the summit when Ricardo Kaka missed a penalty six minutes from the end. But there was still time for Denis to head into his own net from a Ronaldinho free kick to spark jubilant scenes at the San Siro. Napoli are two points behind the leaders in fourth spot.

UDINESE 2-2 GENOA
A fine performance by Udinese goalkeeper Samir Handanovic helped his side take a share of the spoils from a thrilling 2-2 draw with Genoa. Udinese, joint Serie A leaders with Napoli going into this weekend's fixtures, made the perfect start when Gaetano D'Agostino fired them in front from the penalty spot in the fourth minute. Handanovic was in superb form to keep Genoa at bay but was finally beaten shortly after the hour mark by Diego Milito's spot-kick and the visitors took the lead three minutes later thanks to substitute Giuseppe Sculli. However, a Fabio Quagliarella volley after 78 minutes ensured Udinese maintained their excellent home record. Either side could have won it at the end but both had to settle for a deserved point, although Genoa will be the more disappointed as they had the lion's share of chances and are still seeking their first away win.

SIENA 1-0 FIORENTINA
Houssine Kharja scored 14 minutes from time to earn Siena a narrow 1-0 win over Tuscan rivals Fiorentina. The hosts, inspired by returning frontman Massimo Maccarone, dominated proceedings from the opening but struggled to gain the crucial advantage. However, Kharja's crucial late goal secured the points for Siena and propelled them away from the relegation zone. Fiorentina were to rue the absence of the suspended Alberto Gilardino as they failed to capitalise on the few chances they had. The defeat, La Viola's third of the season, meant they lost ground on the Serie A leaders and slip to eighth.

LAZIO 1-0 CATANIA
Substitute Pasquale Foggia struck a late winner to end Catania's stubborn resistence and lift Lazio up to fifth in the Serie A table with a 1-0 victory. Foggia converted a pass from Mauro Zarate with five minutes remaining as Lazio's incessant pressure at the Stadio Olimpico finally told. It had looked like turning into a frustrating afternoon for the Rome-based side as 'keeper Albano Bizzarri, aided by some last-ditch defending and wayward finishing, kept them at bay. While Lazio have the league leaders firmly in their sights, Catania have now not won in three games and their fine start to the campaign is in danger of petering out.

SAMPDORIA 1-0 TORINO
Sampdoria's Claudio Bellucci scored a late winner to hand his side a 1-0 victory over Torino. The striker's 85th-minute effort secured all three points for Samp, who notched their second win in seven days, and they left Torino behind them at the wrong end of the Serie A table. Torino had a goal disallowed on the hour mark and had a good claim for a penalty turned down as they lost their sixth game of the season to remain just above the relegation zone, but they can take heart from the fact they outplayed their opponents for long spells of the game.

PALERMO 3-0 CHIEVO
Palermo returned to winning ways with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Chievo. The Sicilians have been frustrated of late, taking only one point from their previous three games, but they scored three first-half goals to get back on track. Fabrizio Miccoli opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 23 minutes and Simon Kjaer added a second after 37 minutes before Edison Cavani's goal on the stroke of half-time. Palermo had Mark Bresciano dismissed early in the second half for a second bookable offence but it did little to help Chievo.

CAGLIARI 5-1 BOLOGNA
Robert Acquafresca and Neves Capucho Jeda both scored twice as Cagliari continued their resurgence in form with a 5-1 thrashing of Bologna. The Sardinians recorded their first point of the season three weeks ago by holding Milan to a goalless draw and then notched back-to-back wins at Torino and against Chievo. Wednesday's defeat to Genoa was a blip, but they bounced back in fine style with a flurry of second-half goals after going a goal down to Marco Di Vaio's 18th-minute opener. Acquafresca equalised on the stroke of half-time and Daniele Conti put Cagliari ahead three minutes into the second half, before Acquafresca extended the lead with his second four minutes later. Jeda then added a fourth after 69 minutes and completed the rout with a diving header late on. The result leaves Bologna coach Daniele Arrigoni under severe pressure.

ATALANTA 0-0 LECCE
Atalanta held on for a point from a 0-0 draw against Lecce despite playing with 10 men for the final 23 minutes. The visitors dominated for long periods against their Bergamo-based hosts but were unable to conjure up a winner. Their hopes were raised when Atalanta had Jaime Valdes sent off midway through the second half but a late Lecce onslaught failed to result in a much-needed goal.

SERIE A REVIEW:
[Saturday 1 Nov] - [Sunday 2 Nov]