Leaders Inter on Cruz control to defeat Napoli

Julio Cruz scored twice to give Inter a 2-1 win over promoted Napoli yesterday to extend their lead in Serie A to four points.

Juventus in second or third-placed Fiorentina can close the gap on the champions when the two teams meet in Florence this afternoon while Roma, in fourth, visit Parma and struggling Milan travel to Lazio.

Argentine striker Cruz tucked away Zlatan Ibrahimovic's pass after a quick break on 20 minutes and then chested down Dejan Stankovic's chip to fire home from just inside the box on 36 minutes.

Cruz could have notched a hat-trick before halftime but his low curling effort went narrowly wide.

Slovakia midfielder Marek Hamsik, who has caught the eye this season, hit the woodwork in the first half after Inter's defence dithered but Napoli finally bagged a deserved goal when Roberto Sosa headed in with five minutes to go.

Around a thousand noisy Napoli fans, who were not supposed to be able to buy tickets for the game, made the most of being back in the San Siro for the first time since 2001 when the club were last in the top flight.

Bankruptcy in 2004 led to a new club forming in the third tier called Napoli Soccer but successive promotions and a return to their original name of SSC Napoli have brought back the glory days.

Earlier, Atalanta striker Riccardo Zampagna hit the bar with a late penalty in a 0-0 draw with Udinese in Bergamo.

Fixtures - Today - 15.00

Catania vs Livorno
Fiorentina vs Juventus
Genoa vs Cagliari
Lazio vs Milan 20.30
Palermo vs Reggina
Parma vs Roma
Siena vs Empoli
Torino vs Sampdoria

(Oct. 20/21)

Atalanta-Torino; Cagliari-Catania; Fiorentina-Siena; Juventus-Genoa; Livorno-Lazio; Milan-Empoli; Reggina-Inter; Roma-Napoli; Sampdoria-Parma; Udinese-Palermo.