Napoli keep up the pressure on Milan as top four break away

It proved to be a great round for Serie A's top four as Milan, Napoli, Inter and Lazio all recorded wins while the four below them in Udinese, Juve, Palermo and Roma all failed to win, and it was only Udinese out of those four who actually managed to avoid defeat after drawing 0-0 at home to Brescia, a game they would have expected to win. Juventus would also have expected to win away at Lecce after they beat European Champions Inter Milan the week before, but they fell to pieces at the Via Del Mare. Gigi Buffon was sent off in the early going and Lecce then asserted themselves as the superior time, taking the lead in the first half and then doubling after the break. Lecce have been in excellent form since the New Year swept in and this is a huge result that could well give them a significant edge in the battle against relegation.

Juve were not the only club to fall by the wayside this weekend as Roma completely capitulated away in Genoa, blowing a 3-0 lead to lose 4-3 at the Marassi. Alberto Paoloshi got the winner at it was certainly heard in Rome when Lazio were cruising to a comfortable win over Bari. Hernanes was once again on target with  a superb first time volley which was enough in the end to deliver another win for the Rome giants.

1-0 was a familiar score for the big guns and Napoli and Inter followed with 1-0 wins in which they both started well against Catania and Cagliari but in the end both found themselves begging for the final whistle as their heavy fixture lists begin to take their toll. Milan found themselves hanging on as well against Chievo and only found the three points from a wonderful Alex Pato strike. Left out of the midweek European game against Tottenham Pato found himself on the bench again but this time he was able to make the difference and maintain Milan's three point advantage over Napoli.

In the battle for relegation Cesena conceded a late goal away at Parma to have a potential three points for them reduced to one while Sampdoria picked up a valuable point at Fiorentina. Bologna however continued their good form picking up a win over Palermo with a late winner. They sit on 32 points now and seem set to avoid the direct battle for relegation, and this is in spite of their three point deduction for financial irregularities. An amazing achievement for them so far this campaign.