Leao fires Milan top of Serie A with win over Sampdoria

Inter's draw with Napoli blows title race open

ROME: AC Milan climbed to the top of the Serie A table with a 1-0 win over Sampdoria on Sunday, as an early strike from in-form winger Rafael Leao proved decisive at San Siro.

Stefano Pioli's side jumped ahead of Inter Milan and Napoli, which drew 1-1 in Naples on Saturday, to go top with 55 points. Defending champion Inter is one point behind with a game in hand and Napoli is two points back in third place.

Portugal international Leao skipped past his marker and found the bottom corner from a tight angle after eight minutes to notch his 10th goal of the season in all competitions.

Sampdoria goalkeeper Wladimiro Falcone kept his side in it with a string of fine stops, but it wasn't a happy return to Milan for Samp coach and former Rossoneri boss Marco Giampaolo, whose side remained 16th with 23 points.

On the other hand, it was a head-to-head for top spot as Napoli ranked second before Saturday's game, one point behind leaders Inter, who have a game in hand.

Napoli made a good start just seven minutes into the game, as Victor Osimhen was kicked down by Stefan De Vrij, and the referee awarded the home side a penalty after a VAR check. Insigne, who will join Toronto FC in the summer, stepped up to convert it.

The Partenopei should have made it 2-0 in the 12th minute, but Piotr Zielinski saw his attempt graze the post.

Napoli were more aggressive in the first half, but Inter scored the equaliser straight after the break when Dzeko's header was blocked, but the Bosnian reacted quickly to smash the rebound into the net.

Napoli still had chances to put the game to bed, but Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic performed well to keep the scoreline down.

Also on Saturday, Lazio dominated Bologna 3-0, and Venezia won 2-1 at Torino. Agencies

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