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ROME, April 18 - Brief reports of Serie A matches
played on Wednesday: ASCOLI 2 AC MILAN 5 First-half braces by Alberto Gilardino and Kaka, and a
second-half goal by Clarence Seedorf gave Carlo Ancelotti's side
one of their easiest wins of the season. The victory tightened
their grip on fourth and a qualifying place in next season's
Champions League. - - - - EMPOLI 2 ATALANTA 0 Ahead thanks to a 35th-minute goal by Luca Saudati, Empoli
also went a man up when Atalanta defender Giampaolo Bellini was
sent off for elbowing Nicola Pozzi on the stroke of halftime.
Sergio Almiron got their second goal shortly after the restart
to keep them on course for a European berth. - - - - INTER MILAN 1 AS ROMA 3 Victory over Roma would have given Inter the title. Instead,
the Serie A leaders suffered their first league defeat of the
season. Simone Perrotta's opening goal for Roma was cancelled
out by a Marco Materazzi penalty, but late goals by Francesco
Totti and Marco Cassetti gave the visitors a deserved win and
put Inter's celebrations on ice. - - - - LAZIO 0 CHIEVO VERONA 0 After the first-half expulsions of Lazio winger Valon
Behrami and Chievo midfielder Paolo Sammarco for fighting, the
game lost some of its urgency. Third-placed Lazio's second draw
in four days did little to advance their claim for a place in
the Champions League. At the other end of the division, Chievo
remain in danger of relegation. - - - - LIVORNO 2 CAGLIARI 1 Livorno striker Cristiano Lucarelli remains a contender for
Serie A's top scorer this season after he netted his 17th league
goal of the campaign to put his side ahead in the fifth minute.
Defender Dario Knezevic made sure of the win midway through the
second half, when he headed in a free kick. - - - - REGGINA 3 MESSINA 1 Reggina boosted their chances of avoiding relegation with a
win over fellow strugglers Messina. A first-half goal by Rolando
Bianchi, and two in the second half by Nicola Amoruso, his
second from the penalty spot after a foul by Enrico Morello,
kept Reggina hovering above the relegation zone. - - - - UDINESE 1 SAMPDORIA 0 Udinese took the points from a scrappy contest in the
53rd-minute when a Pietro Accardi handball gave them a penalty,
which Vincenzo Iaquinta converted. The win kept alive Udinese's
hopes of playing European football next season. - - - - Playing later (kickoff 1930 GMT): Parma v Fiorentina Siena v Torino
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