ROME : AC Milan's title challenge remained firmly on track when they consolidated their Serie A lead with a convincing 3-1 win over Sampdoria at the San Siro.
Carlo Ancelotti's side now have a six-point cushion on reigning champion's Juventus, who rallied from a two-goal deficit to defeat Brescia 3-2 on Saturday, before AS Roma, two points behind in third, host Inter Milan later on Sunday.
Ancelotti had one eye on their Champions League match against Sparta Prague on Wednesday and left Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko on the bench against eighth-place Sampdoria.
But striker Filippo Inzaghi returned to the starting line-up alongside Jon Dahl Tomasson, Alessandro Nesta and Kaka, who was back from his one-match ban.
The hosts pressured Sampdoria from the outset and it paid off when Andrea Pirlo netted the opening goal after 17 minutes with a curling shot from 25 metres out which hit in off the post.
Sampdoria missed a chance to draw level after 23 minutes when Aimo Diana took advantage of a Clarence Seedorf mistake before Dida cleared.
But four minutes later the visitors took advantage of a slipup in the Milan defence which allowed Cristiano Doni equalise.
Inzaghi restored the lead when he broke his goal drought and headed in Giuseppe Pancaro's cross after 35 minutes, and four minutes after the break Milan secured all three points when Kaka hit the far corner of the net.
A 75th-minute goal from European footballer of the year Pavel Nedved sealed a remarkable comeback by Juventus after they had been trailing 2-0 at half time against Brescia, to leapfrog Roma into second place.
Brescia scored after three minutes following a slipup by Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon which allowed Stefano Mauri to hit into an empty net, and Andrea Caracciolo put them 2-0 up when he tapped in a short pass from Roberto Baggio after 39 minutes.
But back after the break the champions got on the scoreboard after eight minutes when Fabrizio Miccoli converted a penalty, and a minute later Marco Di Vaio found the equaliser from Nedved.
Juventus' comeback was sealed when Nedved himself smashed home a corner kick, with the home side feeling hard done by as they missed a chance to draw level again in the final minute when Caracciolo was stopped for a disputed offside decision, leaving them stuck in tenth position.
A late goal by Matteo Ferrari lifted relegation-threatened Modena to a 2-2 draw at home in a tough derby against Parma.
Tailenders Ancona, reduced to ten men after Maurizio Ganz was sent off five minutes into the second half for diving, held fourth-from-bottom Reggina in a 1-1 draw.
Ancona scored just their ninth goal of the season after ten minutes from veteran Ganz, but Reggina equalised just before the break with an angled drive from David Di Michele.
Empoli, who played with ten men for the entire second half, held Chievo to a 0-0 draw, with Lecce and Siena also sharing the points in a 0-0 draw at the Stadio Via del Mare.
Snow meanwhile brought about the postponement of Sunday's match between Bologna and fourth-placed Lazio at the Dall'Ara stadium.
Italian football league table ahead of Sunday's late match (played, won, drawn, lost, for, against, points):
http://www.channelnewsasia.com
Carlo Ancelotti's side now have a six-point cushion on reigning champion's Juventus, who rallied from a two-goal deficit to defeat Brescia 3-2 on Saturday, before AS Roma, two points behind in third, host Inter Milan later on Sunday.
Ancelotti had one eye on their Champions League match against Sparta Prague on Wednesday and left Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko on the bench against eighth-place Sampdoria.
But striker Filippo Inzaghi returned to the starting line-up alongside Jon Dahl Tomasson, Alessandro Nesta and Kaka, who was back from his one-match ban.
The hosts pressured Sampdoria from the outset and it paid off when Andrea Pirlo netted the opening goal after 17 minutes with a curling shot from 25 metres out which hit in off the post.
Sampdoria missed a chance to draw level after 23 minutes when Aimo Diana took advantage of a Clarence Seedorf mistake before Dida cleared.
But four minutes later the visitors took advantage of a slipup in the Milan defence which allowed Cristiano Doni equalise.
Inzaghi restored the lead when he broke his goal drought and headed in Giuseppe Pancaro's cross after 35 minutes, and four minutes after the break Milan secured all three points when Kaka hit the far corner of the net.
A 75th-minute goal from European footballer of the year Pavel Nedved sealed a remarkable comeback by Juventus after they had been trailing 2-0 at half time against Brescia, to leapfrog Roma into second place.
Brescia scored after three minutes following a slipup by Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon which allowed Stefano Mauri to hit into an empty net, and Andrea Caracciolo put them 2-0 up when he tapped in a short pass from Roberto Baggio after 39 minutes.
But back after the break the champions got on the scoreboard after eight minutes when Fabrizio Miccoli converted a penalty, and a minute later Marco Di Vaio found the equaliser from Nedved.
Juventus' comeback was sealed when Nedved himself smashed home a corner kick, with the home side feeling hard done by as they missed a chance to draw level again in the final minute when Caracciolo was stopped for a disputed offside decision, leaving them stuck in tenth position.
A late goal by Matteo Ferrari lifted relegation-threatened Modena to a 2-2 draw at home in a tough derby against Parma.
Tailenders Ancona, reduced to ten men after Maurizio Ganz was sent off five minutes into the second half for diving, held fourth-from-bottom Reggina in a 1-1 draw.
Ancona scored just their ninth goal of the season after ten minutes from veteran Ganz, but Reggina equalised just before the break with an angled drive from David Di Michele.
Empoli, who played with ten men for the entire second half, held Chievo to a 0-0 draw, with Lecce and Siena also sharing the points in a 0-0 draw at the Stadio Via del Mare.
Snow meanwhile brought about the postponement of Sunday's match between Bologna and fourth-placed Lazio at the Dall'Ara stadium.
Italian football league table ahead of Sunday's late match (played, won, drawn, lost, for, against, points):
http://www.channelnewsasia.com
