Inter extend Serie A lead
\n MILAN
\nInter Milan put one hand on the Serie A title on Sunday after coming back from two goals down to win 4-3 in a thrilling match at Como and move nine points clear of Napoli, who could only draw 1-1 at Parma.
\nTrailing by two in the dying moments of the first half due to goals from Alex Valle and youthful virtuoso Nico Paz, Inter looked set to give champions Napoli hope their Scudetto defence might still be alive.
\nBut Marcus Thuram brilliantly poked home Nicolo Barella\u2019s cross in stoppage time at the end of the opening half before the France forward pounced on a mix-up between Como goalkeeper Jean Butez and defender Marc-Oliver Kempf to loop home the leveller moments after the break.
\nDenzel Dumfries bulleted home Hakan Calhanoglu\u2019s perfectly-delivered free-kick in the 58th minute and then completed the turnaround at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia by coolly guiding home Manuel Akanji\u2019s knock-down 14 minutes later.
\nWith six matches remaining in the season Inter now have a near-unassailable lead at the top of the table, while Como\u2019s first defeat in two months left them outside the Champions League positions.
\nPressed by DAZN into declaring that the title was already sewn up, Inter midfielder Barella simply said \u201clet\u2019s wait a little while\u201d, and Dumfries was equally evasive.
\n\u201cToday was a great win but every match counts and we have to stay focussed,\u201d said Dumfries, who has missed a huge chunk of this season with injuries.
\nComo battled to the end with Lucas Da Cunha\u2019s late penalty, for a soft foul on Paz by Ange-Yoan Bonny, nearly being followed up by a last-gasp leveller when Alberto Moreno smashed the crossbar from close range.
\n\u201cToday my team showed me that we\u2019re capable of and played with desire and courage,\u201d said Como coach Cesc Fabregas.
\n\u201cYes we made mistakes. We\u2019re a young team, and when you do, these teams will punish you. That\u2019s the way it is.\u201d
\nJuventus have taken Como\u2019s place in the top four of Italy\u2019s top flight, a disappointment after a superb first half in which Paz was the star of the show with a brilliant 11th goal of the season and the saved shot which led to Valle\u2019s opener.
\nComo have never played European football and were in Italy\u2019s third tier when acquired by tobacco giant Djarum seven years ago.
\nNapoli slip
\nScott McTominay\u2019s drilled finish on the hour mark gave Napoli a draw at Parma which now looks almost certain not to be enough for a third league crown in four seasons.
\nAntonio Conte\u2019s team were on the back foot within 36 seconds, which was how long it took for Gabriel Strefezza to race on to Nesta Elphege\u2019s knock-on and beautifully curl home Parma\u2019s opener.
\nNapoli struggled to break down the hosts who were content to sit deep and soak up the pressure and deny the away team a sixth straight league win even after McTominay\u2019s equaliser.
\nLast weekend\u2019s win over AC Milan had reopened the prospect of retaining the title but Sunday\u2019s results mean Inter would have to completely collapse to allow Napoli a sniff of the title.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Inter extend Serie A lead MILAN Inter Milan put one hand on the Serie A title on Sunday after coming back from two goals down to win 4-3 in a thrilling match at Como and move nine points clear of Napoli, who could only draw 1-1 at Parma. Trailing by two in the dying moments […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":541737,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-541726","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n