Newz Forum: SOCCER: Italy's Serie A results 16/01/05

AC Milan look to have ensured that the battle for the Scudetto will be a two-horse race after seeing off third-placed Udinese 3-1 at the San Siro on Sunday.

Luciano Spalletti's side have been the surprise package in Serie A this season but any hopes of claiming the ultimate prize seem to be over as they are now eight points adrift of Milan having failed to mastermind a blow to the Rossoneri's ambitions. They had taken an early lead through top scorer Antonio Di Natale, but that served only to stir the hosts, who equalised through Andriy Shevchenko. Marek Jankulovski lapsed after half-time, heading into his own goal for what would have been a cruel goal for Udinese to lose to, had Kaka not sealed it for Milan.


Sampdoria's hopes of making it into next season's Champions League suffered a blow as Bologna left Genoa with a goalless draw. The home side started the day in fifth place but looked anything other than European material in a dour encounter which did little to entertain the crowd at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. The draw lifts Bologna, who have won just once on their travels this season, up to 14th.


In-form marksman Vincenzo Montella added another two goals to his season's account to help Roma battle back from 2-0 down to claim a point from their trip to Chievo. The home side raced into a 2-0 lead after just 20 minutes on the back of goals from Sergio Pellissier and Simone Tiribocchi. But Montella halved the deficit 11 minutes before the break before firing home his second goal - a spectacular overhead kick - in the 52nd minute to earn Roma a share of the spoils on coach Luigi Del Neri's return to his former club. Montella's brace takes him to 16 Serie A goals for the season, two clear of Internazionale's Adriano at the top of the goalscoring charts.


Fabio Bazzani's debut goal was not enough for Lazio as their recent renaissance came to a shuddering halt with a 3-1 home defeat against Palermo. Bazzani - a transfer-window signing from Sampdoria - could not have dreamed of a better start at the Stadio Olimpico when he opened his account after 15 minutes but the visitors stormed back to seal a crucial three points. Luca Toni drew his side level three minutes before the interval and Lamberto Zauli put them on their way to victory midway through the second half. The hosts desperately looked for a way back into the match but Toni made sure of the win when he added his second in the 84th minute. It was the first loss the Biancoceleste have suffered since Giuseppe Papadopulo took charge during the winter break and is a blow to their hopes of European qualification.


Parma's recent resurgence continued as they recorded a 2-1 home victory over Lecce. Second-half goals from Gialloblu pair Marco Bresciano and Alberto Gilardino sandwiched Mirko Vucinic's strike.


Elsewhere, Atalanta and Siena played out a disappointing 1-1 draw while Livorno gave new coach Roberto Donadoni the perfect start with a 3-1 victory against Messina.


On Saturday, a 13th draw of a curious season for Inter Milan maintained their unbeaten record with a 0-0 stalemate against Reggina. Roberto Mancini's side are out of the title race after managing only six wins but still lie fourth in the table and will expect to covert this position into a Champions League place as Udinese and Sampdoria falter.


Brescia remain without a win in the league since December 5 after they shared a 1-1 draw with a Fiorentina side who are improving as the season goes on.

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