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On Saturday in the Italian championship, two matches of the 33rd round took place - Milan's "Inter", fighting for second place, emerged victorious over the "Ascoli" team after a fierce battle, while "Udinese" trying to stay in the fight defeated the "Livorno" club.
Just a few days after the fiasco in the Champions League, "Inter" slightly redeemed itself in the eyes of its fans, winning 2-1 away against "Ascoli" thanks to a great penalty kick from Siniša Mihajlović.
In these matches, the "Inter" fans from Milan did not show up in protest against the poor performance in the Champions League match against "Villarreal". Meanwhile, the local "Inter" club fans, watching the match in the stadium, had posters with inscriptions such as "20 years of humiliation", "no honor or dignity" and "big thanks, greedy parasites".
The frustration of the "Inter" fans grew even more in the 21st minute when the hosts took the lead. Walter Samuel slightly pushed the opponent in his team's penalty area, but it was enough for the referee to award a penalty kick, which was successfully converted by "Ascoli" player Marco Ferrante.
However, after the match, the referee's decision was favorable to the guests - "Inter" forward Obafemi Martins was brought down by the "Ascoli" goalkeeper in the hosts' penalty area, and the referee pointed to the spot again. Julio Cruz's shot was accurate and the score became 1-1.
"Inter" took the lead just five minutes later when Siniša Mihajlović, who came on as a substitute, scored a great penalty kick that pierced the goal. With four minutes remaining until the end of the match, "Inter" forward Julio Cruz received a red card for disputes with the referee.
Nevertheless, even with ten men, "Inter" managed to maintain the lead, which means that the club surpassed the "Milan" club in the standings, as they face "Chievo" in Sunday's match.
In other matches, "Udinese" secured their second consecutive victory, defeating "Livorno" 2-0 away, marking the sixth consecutive loss for them. This match was memorable for "Livorno" coach Carlo Mazzone, as he led the league team in 787 matches and equaled the "Serie A" record.
Saturday's match results:
1 - 2
21' [1 - 0] Marco Ferrante (penalty)
51' [1 - 1] Julio Ricardo Cruz (penalty)
56' [1 - 2] Sinisa Mihajlovic
86' Julio Ricardo Cruz sent off from the field ("Inter")
0 - 2
35' [0 - 1] Vincenzo Iaquinta
52' [0 - 2] Cesare Natali
66' Vincenzo Iaquinta sent off from the field ("Udinese")
Standings table:
