Lazio climbed up to third after beating Roma 2-1 in their second capital derby triumph of the season, while Udinese could only manage a goalless draw with Atalanta.
Roma were left facing an uphill task with just seven minutes gone as goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg was sent off for tripping Miroslav Klose in the area, and they promptly fell behind when Hernanes converted the ensuing penalty. Parity was restored six minutes later when Fabio Borini prodded home from close range, but the visitors notched the decisive third goal through Stefano Mauri before losing Lionel Scaloni to a late red card.
UEFA Champions League hopefuls Napoli picked up their fourth consecutive league win with a 2-1 victory at struggling Parma. One again Napoli got goals from Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi either side of Cristian Zaccardo’s 77th-minute equaliser to close the gap to three points on fourth-placed Udinese, who failed to beat Atalanta.
Inter Milan ended a run of four straight league defeats, coming from behind to draw 2-2 with Catania at home. First-half strikes from Alejandro Gómez and Mariano Izco put the visitors in control, before Diego Forlán and Diego Militio gained a point for Claudio Ranieri’s side. The point will do nothing to ease the pressure on Ranieri, who is expected to be replaced by fired Chelsea boss, and former Inter assistant, Andre Villa-Boas at the end of the season.
Elsewhere, Fiorentina cruised to a 2-0 win against Cesena, while Siena eased their relegation fears by beating Cagliari 3-0 and Bologna moved six points clear of the drop zone after edging Novara 1-0.
Meanwhile, Giuseppe Sculli secured a late point for Genoa to deny Lecce a third successive win in a 2-2 draw.