Udinese defeat Inter after frantic finale
Reuters - Saturday 03 December 2011, 23:10
Udinese joined AC Milan at the
top of Serie A on Saturday after winning 1-0 at Inter Milan in a
game that finished in dramatic style with two missed penalties
and two sendings-off in the last four minutes.
Chilean winger Mauricio Isla scored the only goal from a
lightning counter-attack in the 73rd minute to give Udinese 27
points from 13 matches, the same as Milan who have a better goal
difference.
In a pulsating finale Javier Zanetti (Inter) and Damiano
Ferronetti (Udinese) were dismissed while Antonio Di Natale and
Giampaolo Pazzini missed penalties for each side.
"It's not that common for Udinese to win at the San Siro,"
visiting coach Francesco Guidolin told Sky Sports.
"We are adding up the points and to be top is marvellous. We
must live in the present though."
Inter remained sixth from bottom after suffering their sixth
league defeat of the season.
"We have to be quiet now and work hard," said coach Claudio
Ranieri. "If we are far off the title, there are still other
prizes to be had this season.
"Without crying we have to fight and see where we are by the
end of the year. This should have been the game to turn things
around."
A double from Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani and one each
by Ezequiel Lavezzi and Blerim Dzemaili helped Napoli climb to
fifth with a 4-2 win over bottom club Lecce.
Looking for a hat-trick of league wins, Ranieri opted to
unite Diego Milito and Pazzini up front.
It was Udinese who dominated the early stages though with
Romanian midfielder Gabriel Torje warming Julio Cesar's hands
after 12 minutes with a powerful shot from distance.
In contrast to the visitors, Inter's approach play was
laboured but from a flowing move in the 16th minute Milito
lifted the ball over the bar after finding space on the edge of
the box.
The Argentine striker cracked a powerful free-kick just over
13 minutes later and Thiago Motta then swapped passes with
Milito to create the best chance of the first half but the
midfielder's shot was too close to keeper Samir Handanovic.
TURN AND SHOT
Udinese striker Di Natale had few scraps to feed off but he
almost caught out Julio Cesar with an instinctive turn and shot
just before the hour that the Brazilian keeper could only hold
at the second attempt.
The away side continued to press and they deservedly broke
the deadlock when Isla finished off a brilliant break involving
Di Natale and Floro Flores with a firm right-foot strike into
the corner.
Inter skipper Zanetti received his marching orders with four
minutes to go after collecting a second booking for bringing
down Kwadwo Asamoah but Di Natale's penalty was turned aside by
Julio Cesar.
The home side were presented with the perfect opportunity to
grab a point with a minute to go when defender Ferronetti was
adjudged to have brought down Milito and Pazzini slipped as he
struck the spot-kick and ballooned the ball over.
At the San Paolo stadium, Napoli broke Lecce's resistance
with three goals in a 15-minute spell before half-time.
Argentine forward Lavezzi opened the scoring in the 26th
minute and Cavani doubled the advantage seven minutes later,
finishing coolly after being sent clean through by Goran Pandev.
Swiss midfielder Dzemaili cracked the third four minutes
before the interval with a powerful shot from outside the box.
Colombian striker Luis Muriel pulled a goal back for
visiting Lecce after 54 minutes before Cavani grabbed his second
of the game late on to take his season's tally in the league to
seven goals.
Daniele Corvia made it 4-2 deep into stoppage-time but could
not stop Lecce slumping to their ninth league defeat of the
season.