Inter Milan Beat Roma at Olimpico

Italy's stunner yesterday night, Roma - Inter Milan, marked the revival of Mancini & Co. Inter was coming to Olimpico after a rough week, in which the nerrazzurri lost 1-0 to Sporting Lisbon (Champions League) and drew 1-1 at home to Sampdoria. And, for Massimo Moratti and the Milanese fans, another wrong step would not have been acceptable.

So Inter entered the match determined to prove that the worst was over. Ibrahimovich and Crespo failed to make the best of their scoring chances, while Totti almost succeeded in putting his side ahead after a great free kick.

Still, the visitors were the ones controlling the match and, just one minute to halftime, they managed to break Roma's defense. Hernan Crespo dribbled Mexes on the left side and managed to beat Doni with a lucky shot.

The second half did not see a very determined Roma, despite their 1-0 disadvantage on the scoreboard. Moreover, it was Inter to pressure more Doni's post, with Ibrahimovich having numerous scoring chances. The Swede also wasted a penalty shot at the mid-second half.

The 90th minute also produced an unexpected event. Despite leading 1-0 on the scoreboard, Inter had to finish the match in 10 men. Frenchman Patrick Vieira got a second "yellow" in the dying minutes of the match, but that didn't produce any major changes on the scoreboard.

Italian Serie A's new leaders are now Palermo, who managed to come from behind and beat Catania 5-3. Palermo registered their 3rd win in 3 matches and are top of the table, 2 points clear of Inter. Roma slip to 4th, with 6 points.

Here is the complete scoreboard of yesterday's action inside Serie A:

Cagliari - Livorno 2-2
Chievo - Lazio 0-1
Fiorentina - Parma 1-0
Messina - Reggina 2-0
Milan - Ascoli 1-0
Palermo - Catania 5-3
Roma - Inter 0-1
Sampdoria - Udinese 3-3
Torino - Siena 1-2
Atalanta - Empoli 0-0