Milan, Italy – Mario Balotelli scored on each side of the intermission on Wednesday as AC Milan rolled to a 4-0 victory over Pescara at the Stadio Adriatico.
Milan extended its winning streak in league play to three straight games behind Balotelli's brace and goals from Sulley Muntari and Mathieu Flamini and the club moves to 68 points from 36 matches, four points clear of fourth-place Fiorentina for the final Champions League place.
Balotelli opened the scoring for Milan nine minutes into the match when he converted a penalty kick and Muntari made it 2-0 for the hosts three minutes after the half-hour mark.
After the break, Milan kept the pressure up and Flamini made it three in the 51st minute when he got on the end of a cross from Robinho and fired it home from close range.
Six minutes later, Balotelli completed his double when he powered a cross from Flamini into the top right corner, leaving Pescara goalkeeper Mattia Perin with little chance for a save.
Pescara, meanwhile, suffered defeat for the third consecutive match and are already destined to play in Serie B next season with just 22 points from 36 matches.
Juventus 1, Atalanta 0
Bergamo, Italy - Alessandro Matri netted the only goal of the match as Juventus edged Atalanta by a 1-0 count on Wednesday at the Stadio Atleti Azzurri d'Italia.
Juventus claimed their 29th league title with a win over Palermo last weekend and jumped out in front in the 18th minute on Wednesday as Matri ran onto a through pass from Andrea Pirlo and lifted it into the top portion of the net.
The result lifts the Italian champions to 86 points with two matches remaining, while Atalanta remains in 14th place on 39 points, seven clear of the bottom three.
Napoli 3, Bologna 0
Bologna, Italy - Napoli extended its unbeaten streak in Serie A play to eight consecutive matches after posting a comfortable 3-0 win over Bologna on Wednesday at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara.
After a scoreless first 45 minutes, Marek Hamsik struck first for Napoli in the 53rd minute and Edinson Cavani converted a penalty kick 10 minutes later to make it a two-goal advantage.
Four minutes later, Blerim Dzemaili completed the result for the visitors, which improved to 75 points from 36 matches, while Bologna stays mid-table in 13th place.
Parma 1, Cagliari 0
Cagliari, Italy - Aleandro Rosi's second-half strike was enough to lift Parma to a 1-0 result over Cagliari on Wednesday at the Stadio Sant'Elia.
Both sides had ample opportunities to find the back of the net, but a breakthrough did not come until the 80th minute when Rosi worked his way into prime position on a corner kick and ripped a rising shot from the right side of the box into the top right corner of the net.
Cagliari pushed for an equalizer, but it never materialized as Parma held on for the result to move to 46 points, while Cagliari drops to 12th with 40 points.
Lazio 3, Inter Milan 1
Milan, Italy - Lazio won its second consecutive Serie A match on Wednesday after securing a 3-1 result over Inter Milan at the San Siro.
Lazio struck first in the 21st minute through an own goal by Inter's Samir Handanovic, but the hosts leveled the match in the 33rd through Ricardo Alvarez.
Lazio took the lead back when Hernanes converted a penalty kick in first-half stoppage time and Inter had a chance to tie it again with 20 minutes to play, but Alvarez missed a spot-kick opportunity.
Six minutes later, Ogenyi Onazi scored to put the result away for Lazio, which rises to sixth place on 58 points.
Udinese 3, Palermo 2
Palermo, Italy - Mehdi Benatia's tally seven minutes from time lifted Udinese to a thrilling 3-2 win over Palermo on Wednesday at the Stadio Renzo Barbera.
The visitors got off to a flying start just nine minutes in through Luis Muriel, but Palermo got even in the 34th minute as Fabrizio Miccoli buried a penalty kick.
Gabriele Angella put Udinese ahead in the 64th minute, but Palermo drew level with nine minutes to play through Abel Hernandez before Benatia's goal two minutes later sealed it for Udinese, who climbed into the final Europa League place with 60 points.
Sampdoria 1, Catania 1
Genoa, Italy - Sampdoria and Catania battled to a 1-1 draw on Wednesday at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.
The hosts opened the scoring nine minutes prior to the intermission through Lorenzo De Silvestri, but were unable to hold the lead as Nicolas Spolli scored for Catania in the 68th minute.
Sampdoria improves to 39 points, seven clear of the relegation zone, while Catania remains in ninth place on 52 points.
Fiorentina 1, Siena 0
Siena, Italy - Gonzalo Rodriguez's first-half goal was enough to power Fiorentina to a 1-0 victory over Siena on Wednesday at the Stadio Artemio Franchi.
Rodriguez found the only goal of the match for the visitors 14 minutes into the contest when he got on the end of a corner kick from Manuel Pasqual and popped it past Siena goalkeeper Gianluca Pegolo from close range.
The result sees Fiorentina improve to 64 points, four behind AC Milan for the final Champions League place, while Siena remains in the bottom three on 30 points.
Torino 0, Genoa 0
Turin, Italy - Torino and Genoa played to a scoreless draw on Wednesday at the Stadio Olimpico di Torino.
Scoring chances were at a premium as Genoa managed only one shot on target and Torino just two shots on goal as both clubs were forced to settle for a point apiece.
The result leaves Torino in 16th place with 37 points, one better than Genoa.
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