Udinese moved to within six points of the Serie A summit after a 3-1 victory at Bologna, on a night when Lazio secured a narrow win and Napoli sent Inter Milan to another defeat.
Stefano Pioli’s Bologna were unbeaten in seven outings ahead of their meeting with Udinese, but Udiense ran out comfortable winners thanks to Antonio Di Natale’s 38th-minute penalty, his eighth goal in eight league games, and second-half efforts from Dušan Basta and Antonio Floro Flores.
Miroslav Klose’s strike kept Lazio level on 45 points with Udinese as they beat Fiorentina 1-0, while Napoli piled more misery on Claudio Ranieri’s Inter. Ezequiel Lavezzi’s fourth goal in three games in all competitions earned Napoli, a 1-0 victory that lifted them to fifth in the table, whereas Inter’s fifth defeat in six Serie A sorties leaves them seventh.
Earlier in the day, Germán Denis registered a hat-trick as Atalanta humbled AS Roma 4-1, and Siena overcame Palermo by the same scoreline. Elsewhere, there were home wins for Catania and Chievo Verona against Novara and Cesena respectively, and ecce prevailed 2-1 at Cagliari.