Juventus ground out a bad-tempered 1-0 victory over 10-man Catania to pull 14 points clear at the top of the Serie A table last night.

The reigning champions and likely winners of a third-straight Scudetto have struggled to put lesser opposition to bed in recent weeks and were uninspired when beating the league’s bottom side.

Carlos Tevez did send three more points back to Turin with a typically fierce effort in the 59th minute and the chase was beyond Catania once striker Gonzalo Bergessio picked up a second yellow card.

Roma, in second, have played a game less but Juve further distanced third-placed Napoli as they went down 1-0 to Fiorentina as Joaquin struck in the 87th minute.

Napoli had earlier been reduced to 10 men with the dismissal of Faouzi Ghoulam.

The result leaves Fiorentina seven points adrift of third place.

They are also four points clear of Inter after they were punished for missing their chances in a 2-1 home defeat against upwardly-mobile Atalanta.

Inter’s Mauro Icardi equalised almost immediately after Giacomo Bonaventura opened the scoring shortly before half-time but the Argentinian shot wide of an open goal with two minutes remaining.

Bonaventura duly headed home the winner and it finished 2-1 as Atalanta registered a fourth straight victory that moved them into eighth place in the Serie A table.

Parma missed the chance to move up to fourth in the Serie A standings after being held at home to a 1-1 draw by Genoa.

Isaac Cofie gave the visitors a lead which lasted just 10 minutes before Ezequiel Schelotto levelled.

Milan managed to take a rare point from their 1-1 draw at Lazio but the immediate future still looks bleak for Clarence Seedorf’s ailing side.

The Dutchman can expect to keep his job for the time being after Abdoulay Konko’s own-goal ensured Alvaro Dominguez’s second-half strike was not enough to condemn Milan to a fourth straight defeat.

Other results on Sunday meant the 18-time champions slumped to 12th in the table, where they lie 42 points behind leaders Juventus and 11 off the nearest Europa League place with nine games to play.

Sampdoria put Hellas Verona to the sword and climbed towards the top half of the table with a resounding 5-0 victory at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.

The Genoese club took full advantage of a limp Verona side who appear to have given up somewhat after reaching 40 points and effectively securing a second season in the top flight.

Two goals from Roberto Soriano plus efforts from Gianluca Sansone, Renan and Angelo Palombo steered Samp to their best victory of the campaign so far and they are now within two points of catching 10th-placed Torino.

Antonio Di Natale was the only man to get on the scoresheet as Udinese claimed a 1-0 win over strugglers Sassuolo.

Di Natale gave his side the lead in the 27th minute and they held on to the end, although both sides missed a chance from the penalty spot.

Bologna claimed a vital win in their battle to stay in Serie A as they beat strugglers Cagliari 1-0.

Lazaros Christodoulopoulos’ 76th-minute penalty was enough to seal victory.

Serie A

Bologna 1
Christod’los 76p;
Cagliari 0

HT: 0-0. Att: 21,000.

Catania 0
Juventus 1
Tevez 59;

HT: 0-0. Att: 19,945.
Red card: Bergessio (C) 67.

Inter 1
Icardi 36;
Atalanta 2
Bonaventura 35, 90;

HT: 1-1. Att: 46,000.

Lazio 1
Gonzalez 60;
Milan 1
Konko 43og;

HT: 0-1. Att: 25,000.

Napoli 0
Fiorentina 1
Joaquin 87;

HT: 0-0. Att: 47,000.
Red card: Ghoulam (N) 38.

Parma 1
Schelotto 31;
Genoa 1
Cofie 21;

HT: 1-1. Att: 12,000.

Sampdoria 5
Sansone 4; Renan 23; Soriano 38, 48; Palombo 59;
Verona 0

HT: 3-0. Att: 22,000.

Udinese 1
Di Natale 27;
Sassuolo 0

HT: 1-0. Att: 12,000.
Missed penalties: Di Natale (U) 36; Floccari (S) 72.

	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Juventus	29	25	3	1	65	19	78
Roma	28	19	7	2	54	14	64
Napoli	29	17	7	5	53	30	58
Fiorentina	29	15	6	8	49	31	51
Parma	28	12	11	5	46	32	47
Inter	29	12	11	6	47	31	47
Lazio	29	11	9	9	37	36	42
Atalanta	29	12	4	13	33	39	40
Verona	29	12	4	13	43	51	40
Torino	29	10	9	10	42	37	39
Sampdoria	29	10	7	12	38	42	37
Milan	29	9	9	11	42	43	36
Genoa	29	9	9	11	32	36	36
Udinese	29	10	4	15	33	42	34
Cagliari	29	6	11	12	27	39	29
Bologna	29	5	11	13	24	43	26
Chievo	29	6	6	17	23	43	24
Livorno	29	6	6	17	32	54	24
Sassuolo	29	5	6	18	28	57	21
Catania	29	4	8	17	21	50	20

Next fixtures
Tomorrow: 20.45 Roma vs Torino.
Wednesday: 20.45 Atalanta vs Livorno; Cagliari vs Verona; Catania vs Napoli; Chievo vs Bologna; Fiorentina vs Milan; Genoa vs Lazio; Juventus vs Parma; Sassuolo vs Sampdoria.
Thursday: 20.45 Inter vs Udinese.

Top scorers
16 goals: Immobile (Torino), Tevez (Juventus).
14 goals: Rossi (Fiorentina), Higuain (Napoli).

Prima Divisione ‘A’
AlbinoLeffe vs FeralpiSalo 2-3; Cremonese vs Pavia 1-0; Pro Vercelli vs Venezia 1-0; Pro Patria vs Lumezzane 0-0; Reggiana vs Como 2-0; San Marino vs Entella 2-1; Savona vs Vicenza 1-0; SudTirol vs Carrarese 1-0.

Leading standings: Entella 53; P. Vercelli 47; Cremonese 44; Vicenza 42.

Prima Divisione ‘B’
Benevento vs L’Aquila 0-1; Gubbio vs Frosinone 2-3; Perugia vs Paganese 2-1; Pontedera vs Ascoli 5-0; Prato vs Lecce 1-3; Salernitana vs Catanzaro 0-0; Viareggio vs Barletta 2-1.

Leading standings: Frosinone 58; Perugia 53; Lecce 52; Catanzaro, L’ Aquila 42.