Juventus maintained their 100 per cent start to the new Serie A season as AC Milan endured a frustrating stalemate at Livorno.
Perfect records were on the line at Stadio Olimpico as Lazio welcomed Juventus to the Italian capital and it was the hosts who wilted after slipping to a 2-0 defeat.
A tense first half produced no goals and it was not until the 72nd minute that the deadlock was broken as on-loan defender Martin Caceres scored.
And in stoppage-time, David Trezeguet made certain Juve claimed a third win from as many games as Lazio dropped their first points of the season.
AC Milan failed to respond positively to the recent derby drubbing by Inter as Leonardo's side could only muster a 0-0 draw at Livorno.
Summer signing Klaas Jan Huntelaar was handed his first start by Leonardo, but the Dutch striker failed to make much of an impact.
The closest Milan came to a goal was in the second half when substituted Andrea Pirlo curled a free-kick against the crossbar.
Sampdoria and Genoa have moved level with Juventus at the top of the Serie A table while there were also wins for Inter Milan and Fiorentina.
10-man Sampdoria maintained their 100 per cent start to the new season with a 1-0 success over lowly Atalanta.
Samp looked up against it when Fernando Tissone received his second yellow card of the game just seven minutes into the second half.
However, it was the visitors who struck the only goal of the game after 64 minutes through Daniele Mannini as Samp made it three wins out of three.
Champions Inter have climbed into fourth in the Serie A table following a 2-0 home win over previously unbeaten Parma.
Jose Mourinho's side left it late with goals from Samuel Eto'o (71) and Diego Milito giving the Nerazzurri all three points.
Genoa remain hot on the heels of Juventus after seeing off Napoli 4-1 in a fiery encounter.
Both teams had a man sent off before half-time with Hugo Campagnaro following Domenico Criscito's example of seeing red.
Marek Hamsik had put Napoli in front before colleague Campagnaro was sent off, although the home side dominated from there.
From the moment Sergio Floccari levelled matters from the penalty spot it was all one-way traffic.
Giandomencio Mesto put the home side in front in the 55th minute with Hernan Crespo adding a third 20 minutes later.
Things went from bad to worse as Napoli's Salvatore Aronica was then sent off with Houssine Kharja converting the ensuing penalty to complete the rout.
Fiorentina's fine start to the new campaign continued with a 1-0 success over winless Cagliari. Alberto Gilardino 55th-minute effort proved the decisive strike.
Roma have started life under new manager Claudio Ranieri on a winning note after battling back from a goal down to secure a 2-1 win at Siena.
Massimo Maccarone's first-half goal looked for long spells like being the match-winning effort before Philippe Mexes equalised with 73 minutes on the clock.
Paul Codrea's dismissal handed Roma a one-man advantage late on and the visitors made Siena pay with John Arne Riise snatching the win late on.
Bari were minutes from securing their first win of the new season after they were held 1-1 by Palermo. Riccardo Allegretti scored early on, but substitute Igor Budan snatched a late point.
Chievo have moved out of the bottom three after a 2-0 success over winless Bologna. First-half goals from Giampiero Pinzi and Sergio Pellissier were enough to seal the win.
There was a goal-fest at Stadio Friuli as Udinese got the better of Catania with a 4-2 success.
Giuseppe Mascara restored Cantania's lead in the 34th minute after Antonio Floro Flores cancelled out Takayuki Morimoto's early opener.
However, it was all Udinese in the second half as Antonio Di Natale's second half hat-trick, his second coming from the penalty spot, sealed a fine comeback. |
Round 3 Wrap-up
Posted - 14 Sep 2009 : 19:24:16
