© EuroFootball.com
Italian Serie A matches started with two games on Saturday in the third round. The first victory of the season was won by "Parma", who defeated "Empoli" with a minimal lead at home, and Milano's "Inter" club easily won against "Lecce" and temporarily became the league leader.
1 - 0 17' [1 - 0] Bernardo Corradi
In the 13th minute, the visitors had a great opportunity to take the lead when C.Rigano received a long pass and deceived the goalkeeper, but the forward stumbled and before he could recover, P.Cannavaro cleared the ball. "Empoli" controlled the game, but in the 17th minute "Parma" broke forward - a mistake by defender B.Corradi sent the ball into the far corner of the goal with a precise shot.
The goal gave the hosts confidence in their abilities and they took the initiative. In the rest of the first half, the Delvecchio-Corradi duo threatened the "Empoli" goal constantly, but they failed to double the score, so the teams went to rest with "Parma" leading by a minimal result.
In the second half, the hosts continued to dominate and halfway through the half they lacked luck - A.Pisanu's shot hit the post, and B.Corradi failed to react and missed the opportunity to score from six meters away. Later, "Empoli" was also close to scoring, but G.Cardone cleared G.Tavano's shot from the goal line. "Parma" won a crucial victory and rose to the middle of the table.
3 - 0 25' [1 - 0] Obafemi Martins 29' [2 - 0] Dejan Stankovic 85' [3 - 0] Julio Ricardo Cruz
At the beginning of the match, "Inter" attacked the opponents' goal, but neither O.Martins nor Adriano could score, and in the 19th minute A.Pinardi missed a good opportunity in a "Lecce" counterattack. However, in the 24th minute, the hosts finally broke through when E.Cambiasso received a pass and beat goalkeeper V.Sicignano.
Shortly after, the Milan team doubled the score - the defenders of the visiting club left D.Stankovič open at the far post and he sent the ball into the goal. For the Serb, this was his first goal after almost 10 months of absence, and his attempt to score again was blocked by the goalkeeper, but E.Cambiasso hit the post with a follow-up shot.
In the second half, as the rain poured down, "Inter" goalkeeper J.Cesar also had work to do, deflecting M.Casetti's shot, and Nigerian O.Martins missed a couple of great chances by shooting next to the goal.
As the match neared its end, the hosts' coach R.Mancini sent J.Cruz onto the field instead of Martins, and just like in previous matches against "Palermo", he almost immediately scored a goal, stopping the ball passed by Ze Maria with his chest and scoring with a precise shot from close range, securing three points for the "Inter" club.
