The 26th day of Serie A provided excitement, goals and surprises. Gilardino’s Genoa broke the negative series and beat Udinese 2-0 at the Ferraris, complicating the situation of the Friulians, who slipped to fourth-last place. Retegui and Bani scored the goals for the red and blues in the first half, while in the second half the Bianconeri played with ten men due to Kristensen’s expulsion and claimed in vain a Lucca goal cancelled out for offside.
Dionisi exonerated after yet another Serie A defeat
Empoli struck an external blow at the Mapei Stadium, where they defeated Sassuolo 3-2 in a salvation challenge. The Tuscans went three times ahead through Luperto, Niang and Bastoni, the latter in the 94th minute, and were reached twice by Pinamonti and Ferrari. With this victory, Empoli brought to six matches without defeat and put four points away from the third-last place.
Monza confirmed their positive momentum and beat Salernitana 2-0, who instead suffered their fourth consecutive defeat and anchored themselves in last place. The brianzoli found the goals in the final with Maldini and Pessina, after having hit a post with Djuric and having come close to taking the lead with Tchaouna. Salernitana had their chances with Izzo and Gagliardini, but failed to trouble Ochoa. At the end of the match, the home fans protested against the team and the club.
Juve win at the last gasp against Frosinone
Juventus struggled more than expected to overcome Frosinone 3-2, who gave the Italian champions a hard time. The Bianconeri open the scoring after three minutes through Vlahovic, but Frosinone surprised Juventus by goals from Cheddira and Brescianini, who took advantage of two defensive errors by the hosts. Vlahovic restored parity with his personal double, while Rugani gave Juventus the three points with a last-minute header. Allegri breathed a sigh of relief after four games without a win.
Finally, Cagliari snatched a late equaliser at the Unipol Domus, where they drew 1-1 against Napoli. The Sardinians conceded Osimhen’s goal in the 65th minute, after a beautiful action by Raspadori, but they did not give up and found the equaliser in the 96th minute with Luvumbo, who took advantage of a mistake by Juan Jesus. Napoli lost two precious points in the race for second place, while Cagliari gained a point that could be worth salvation. Calzona made his league debut with a bitter draw.
Serie A dominators
Inter never stop: with a dominant performance, the Nerazzurri defeated Lecce 4-0, consolidating their supremacy in the standings. Conte’s team once again showed their strength and balance, putting the hosts in trouble right from the first half.
The goal that unlocked the result came in the 15th minute with Lautaro Martinez, who took advantage of an excellent throw from Asllani and beat Gabriel with a precise shot. Lecce tried to react, but found little space against the Inter defence, well led by De Vrij.
In the second half, Inter upped the tempo further and went on the offensive with three more goals. In the 54th minute, Frattesi doubled with a right-footer from outside the box on Sanchez’s assist, then in the 56th minute the same Chilean served Martinez for his 101st Serie A goal. The poker was completed in the 67th minute by De Vrij, who scored with a header from Dimarco’s corner kick.
With this victory, Inter reached 66 points, taking them to +9 over Juventus, who drew with Sassuolo. The 20th Scudetto seems ever closer for the Nerazzurri, who have won their last seven league games and their last ten in 2024. Lecce, on the other hand, remain in fourth-last place with 24 points, four away from the relegation zone.
Milan and Atalanta are not hurt
Milan and Atalanta shared the stakes in the post-match match at the end of an intense and exciting game, the two teams drew 1-1 at the San Siro, maintaining their positions in the standings.
The Rossoneri started the match better, finding the advantage in the 3rd minute with a splendid personal action by Leao, who dribbled past two opponents and slipped a left-footed shot past Carnesecchi. Atalanta reacted with pride and took the game into their own hands, touching the equaliser with Zapata and Malinovskyi.
The equaliser came in the 42nd minute on a penalty kick, awarded for a foul on Kjaer’s hand. Koopmeiners came from the penalty spot, beating Maignan with an angled shot. The first half ended 1-1.
In the second half, Milan tried to regain the lead, creating several chances through Pulisic and Loftus-Cheek, but found a very fit Carnesecchi in their way, who repelled every attempt. Atalanta tried to strike on the counter-attack, but lacked precision in their conclusions.
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