Soccer Sports News & Betting

Barcelona beats Benidorm 1-0 in Copa del Rey.
Bojan Krkic’s 55th-minute goal brought Barcelona a 1-0 win over minnow Benidorm in the Copa del Rey on Tuesday and its 10th straight victory in all competitions.

Teenage striker Bojan decided the fourth-round, first-leg match with a curling long-range shot which eluded diving goalkeeper Juan Carlos Caballero at his left post.

The goal was Barcelona’s 34th of its winning streak, which also includes six Spanish league games and three in the Champions League.

Barcelona will be expected to increase its advantage when it hosts the regional third-division side in the second leg on Nov. 12 and reach the last 16 of the knockout competition it has not won for a decade.

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi and goalkeeper Victor Valdes were among those who were rested for the game at a wet Foietes Municipal Stadium, while striker Samuel Eto’o and captain Carles Puyol spent the match on the bench. Another striker, Thierry Henry, was a late withdrawal through illness.

Coach Pep Guardiola’s team dominated the first half but was denied a goal by Caballero and some wayward shooting. The visitors had the ball in the net in the 26th minute but Victor Sanchez’s header was disallowed for offside.

Barcelona strove to increase its lead after the goal, with Martin Caceres wasting a clear chance in the 84th by heading too high and Gerard Pique blazing another opportunity over the bar five minutes later.

First-division clubs have entered the competition at this stage, with rules stating that those who are drawn against lower-league opponents must play the first leg away from home.

Among 13 games on Wednesday, holders Valencia visit fourth-division Portugalete. Getafe, beaten finalist of the past two seasons, hosts Osasuna in an all first-division clash.

On Thursday, Real Madrid begins its bid to win the competition for the first time since 1993 at third-division Real Union, while Athletic Bilbao hosts fellow topflight team, Recreativo Huelva.

Bayer Leverkusen beats Werder Bremen in Bundesliga. Bayern Leverkusen regained a provisional lead in the Bundesliga by winning 2-0 at Werder Bremen in the 10th round on Tuesday.

By beating last season’s runner-up on goals by Arturo Vidal and Manuel Friedrich, Leverkusen moved past Hoffenheim into first place with 21 points.

Hoffenheim, the surprising newcomer with 19 points, plays at Bochum on Wednesday and can reclaim the top spot.

With most of the leaders playing on Wednesday, Schalke also moved closer to the top with a 3-0 win in Karlsruhe.

In other games, Wolfsburg beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 3-0 behind a pair of penalties, and Arminia Bielefeld rallied to draw 1-1 at home against fellow strugglers Energie Cottbus.

Werder Bremen was without a win in six games in all competitions, and was 10th in the 18-team standings and in danger of dropping further when the round was complete. Leverkusen scored its fourth win on the road.

Werder Bremen had the early chances but could not score. Striker Hugo Almeida had the first shot but Bayer Leverkusen goalkeeper Rene Adler parried his free kick. Almeida then struck the ball across the face of the goal and barely missed a few minutes later.

Vidal put the visitors ahead after Werder Bremen goalkeeper Christian Vander, playing for the injured Tim Wiese, collided hard with defender Per Mertesacker, leaving Vidal an unprotected net in the 71st. Mertesacker had to be substituted a few minutes later.

In the 81st, Simon Rolfes hit the post off a corner but Friedrich knocked in the rebound for his second goal in two games.

Markus Rosenberg then forced Adler into a diving save as Bremen desperately pressed ahead but Leverkusen held on.

Wolfsburg striker Grafite earned a penalty in the 40th minute and converted it himself for 1-0. The home side doubled the lead in the 55th when Alexander Madlung headed in off a free kick by Zvjezdan Misimovic. Misimovic converted another spot kick in the 75th after Gal Alberman gave away the penalty.

In Karlsruhe, Schalke went ahead after 15 minutes when Kevin Kuranyi chested down the ball to Marcelo Bordon, who drove inside the post.

Four minutes later, Kuranyi headed in a free kick from Ivan Rakitic.

Karlsruhe made its job even more difficult when defender and captain Maik Franz was sent off in the 56th. Jefferson Farfan made it 3-0 with a header in the 67th.

Cottbus took the lead in the 31st when Dimitar Rangelov headed in a soft cross from Ervin Skela. But Rangelov was sent off in the 44th with his second yellow card of the match for rough play and Arminia Bielefeld’s Artur Wichniarek tied the game in the 63rd with his seventh goal of the season.

Out of jail, Barton scores for Newcastle.
NEWCASTLE, England -Joey Barton scored in his first start since his jail sentence and Newcastle beat West Bromwich Albion 2-1 to climb out of the English Premier League relegation zone on Tuesday.

Barton netted a ninth-minute penalty and Obafemi Martins added a second just before halftime on his 24th birthday to give short-term manager Joe Kinnear his first victory in his fourth game in charge of the Magpies.

Their second league win bumped the Magpies from 19th to 15th in the standings.

“I know its an old cliche but nobody wants to be in the bottom three,” said Kinnear, who has the job until owner Mike Ashley sells the club and a new manager takes over. “If we can get a second victory back to back then it would be a completely different picture.”

Ishmael Miller replied for the Baggies in the 64th minute but Tony Mowbray’s team lost for the third time in a row.

Barton had not started a game since before his 74-day jail sentence in May for a fight in a fast-food restaurant in Liverpool last December. Then he was suspended for six games for a training ground attack on former teammate Ousmane Dabo when he was at Manchester City. Barton was still under a suspended four-month jail sentence for the Dabo incident.

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BENIDORM, Spain - Bojan Krkic’s 55th-minute goal brought Barcelona a 1-0 win over minnow Benidorm in the Copa del Rey, its 10th straight victory in all competitions.

Teenage striker Bojan decided the fourth-round, first-leg match with a curling long-range shot which eluded diving goalkeeper Juan Carlos Caballero at his left post.

The goal was Barcelona’s 34th of its winning streak, which also includes six Spanish league games and three in the Champions League.

Barcelona will be expected to increase its advantage when it hosts the regional third-division side in the second leg on Nov. 12 and reach the last 16 of the knockout competition it has not won for a decade.

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FRANKFURT, Germany - Bayern Leverkusen regained a provisional lead in the Bundesliga by winning 2-0 at Werder Bremen in the 10th round.

By beating last season’s runner-up on goals by Arturo Vidal and Manuel Friedrich, Leverkusen moved past Hoffenheim into first place with 21 points.

Hoffenheim, the surprising newcomer with 19 points, plays at Bochum on Wednesday and can reclaim the top spot.

With most of the leaders playing on Wednesday, Schalke also moved closer to the top with a 3-0 win in Karlsruhe.

In other games, Wolfsburg beat Borussia Moenchengladbach 3-0 behind a pair of penalties, and Arminia Bielefeld rallied to draw 1-1 at home against fellow strugglers Energie Cottbus.

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PARIS - David Bellion scored twice as Bordeaux routed Le Havre 4-0 and tied seven-time defending champion Lyon at the top of the French league.

Argentine striker Fernando Cavenaghi scored one and was involved in the three other goals.

In the 29th, Cavenaghi passed to Bellion who beat goalkeeper Christophe Revault with a powerful low shot, and Bellion got his second in the 47th when he was set up by Cavenaghi and Wendel.

Cavenaghi got Bordeaux’s third in the 71st with a neat finish off Marouane Chamakh’s pass, and Wendel completed the rout in the 80th after Cavenaghi stepped over the ball and let it roll to Wendel.

After 11 rounds, Bordeaux and Lyon both have 21 points, and Marseille was third with 19 points.

Bordeaux has a better goals difference, but Lyon has played a game less and can reclaim the lead it wins at last-place Sochaux on Wednesday.

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GLASGOW, Scotland - Kris Boyd and Kyle Lafferty fired Rangers into the semifinals of the Scottish League Cup in a 2-0 victory over Hamilton.

Boyd, who has told Scotland coach George Burley he no longer wants to play for the national side while he was in charge, scored in the 25th minute at Ibrox Park and Lafferty added the second in the 50th.

In other quarterfinals, Dundee United edged Dunfermline 1-0 with Scott Robertson’s first-half goal, and Falkirk beat Inverness 1-0 on Neil McCann’s header.

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AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - Mounir El Hamdaoui’s league-leading 10th and 11th goals of the season helped AZ Alkmaar beat Roda JC 2-0 and move atop the Dutch league.

Elsewhere, Ghana defender Eric Addo netted a rare goal in the 57th minute and Otman Bakkal added another in the last to give defending champion PSV Eindhoven a 2-0 victory over ADO The Hague.

AZ improved to 18 points, two ahead of FC Groningen, which plays NEC Nijmegen on Wednesday. NAC Breda, which hosts FC Twente on Wednesday was third with 16, and PSV fourth with 15.

Sergio Zijler and Paul Quasten scored in Willem II’s 2-2 draw against FC Volendam. Melvin Platje and Paul de Lange replied for Volendam, which picked up its first point of the season.

Poland blocks bank accounts of football federation. Polish authorities say they have frozen some bank accounts belonging to the country’s football federation.

A spokeswoman for Warsaw’s Tax Chamber said Monday that the action was taken because the federation owes up to 10 million zlotys (US$3.2 million) in unpaid taxes.

Agnieszka Zukowska told TVN24 television that part, but not all, of the money owed was frozen. She did not say how much.

The move comes three days before elections are held for a new governing board for the federation.

The government has been in conflict with the federation over allegations that the FA is not doing enough to combat corruption in Polish football.

Redknapp hires Bond as Tottenham assistant manager. Tottenham has hired Kevin Bond as assistant coach, reuniting him with manager Harry Redknapp for the fifth time.

Bond, who worked alongside Redknapp at West Ham, Southampton and in two spells at Portsmouth, has been looking for work since being fired as manager of lower league Bournemouth in September.

Bond has enjoyed success as assistant to Redknapp and almost kept Bournemouth in League One last season despite a 10-point deduction.

He will hope his return to topflight football marks a recovery from a testing period when he was the subject of unproven allegations of corruption.

A documentary by the British Broadcasting Corp. in September 2006 alleged that Redknapp tried to lure a player under contract at Blackburn. Bond was implicated and fired from his job as assistant manager at Newcastle, but is taking legal action against the BBC and against Newcastle for wrongful dismissal.

When City of London police raided Redknapp’s house at 6 a.m. in November 2007 as part of a corruption inquiry, they were later forced to pay him damages.

Redknapp claimed the episode cost him the chance to become England manager, but Newcastle still offered him the post of manager in January.

Redknapp turned down the offer and could now be about to appoint former Spurs midfielder Tim Sherwood as one of his assistants.

“Kevin Bond has joined me,” Redknapp told Sky Sports TV on Monday. “There are a couple of lads who have been here who I spoke to about joining us as well. We will wait and see what happens with that one.

“I like Tim, I think he is very knowledgeable and great on the game.”

Former Arsenal captain Tony Adams was Redknapp’s most recent assistant at Portsmouth, but Redknapp has said he won’t be joining Tottenham because of his association with Spurs’ fiercest rivals.

British bookmaker William Hill rated Adams favorite to succeed Redknapp at Pompey.

Redknapp led Tottenham to a 2-0 win over Bolton on Sunday, raising spirits at the club despite the fact that the team’s first Premier League victory wasn’t enough to lift it off the bottom of the standings. His next match comes Wednesday with a daunting trip to fourth-place Arsenal.

The hiring of a new coaching team, which included a 5 million-pound ($7.7 million; 6.1 million euros) payment to Portsmouth for Redknapp, was estimated by British newspaper The Financial Times to cost Tottenham at least 10 million pounds ($15.4 million; 12.2 million euros).

That includes a settlement to the fired Juande Ramos, who had completed just one year of a contract reportedly worth about 3.5 million pounds ($5.4 million; 4.29 million euros) per year.

But that will prove to be money well spent if Tottenham avoids relegation. Demotion from the Premier League is estimated to cost a club at least 25 million pounds ($38.6 million; 30.6 million euros).

Redknapp is unable to sign new players until the January transfer window. Tottenham fans hope he will attempt to get Jermain Defoe back to the club and chanted the player’s name on Sunday.

Redknapp has already drafted in several players who were languishing in the reserves after falling out of favor with Ramos or his predecessor Martin Jol.

Midfield trio Hossam Ghaly, Adel Taarabt and Kevin-Prince Boateng and defenders Paul Stalteri and Ricardo Rocha were all given squad numbers Monday after failing to make a single appearance between them this season.

Stalteri spent the second half of last season on loan at Fulham, while Rocha and Boateng were linked to other clubs during the offseason and had been expected to leave Tottenham.

Ghaly has not played for Tottenham since throwing his shirt at Jol following his substitution in a Premier League match in May 2007. Ghaly was set to move to Birmingham at the end of that season, but the Blues pulled out of a move when Ghaly criticized the club’s players and training methods.

The Egypt midfielder’s only action since has been to play half a season at Derby, which was relegated with the worst ever Premier League points tally.

Palestinians host first international soccer game. Palestinians may not have a state, but now they have a way to express their national pride - through soccer.

On Sunday, the national team hosted an international match for the first time, in the West Bank’s only regulation-size stadium. Located in a West Bank suburb of Jerusalem, the stadium was renovated with the help of FIFA, soccer’s governing body, and other donors.

Thousands watched the friendly game against Jordan, and the crowd roared as Palestinian forward Ahmed Kashkash scored several minutes after kickoff. Jordan tied early in the second half. The game ended in a 1-1 tie.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter was on hand to cheer. “We are here to realize a dream, that is the national team of Palestine playing in its own stadium,” Blatter said, calling the event “historic.”

Some said the international recognition was important. “We now have a stadium, and the Palestinian flag will be flying in this stadium,” Wissam Abu Sharif, a 30-year-old Palestinian soccer fan, said ahead of the game. “Palestine is on the map of international sports.”

It’s not a soccer powerhouse, though. The Palestinian team is ranked 180th of 207 members by FIFA. It peaked at No. 115 in April 2006.

Still, for an afternoon, soccer promised to make Palestinians forget their troubles, whether decades of Israeli military occupation or the acrimonious split between the West Bank, controlled by moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

In a joint pre-game news conference with Blatter, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad urged more foreign teams to play in the Palestinian territories. “This is a sign of solidarity, it’s a message of solidarity with the Palestinian people during a time of hardship,” Fayyad said.

Gaza’s prime minister, Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, said the game was an opportunity to bridge the rift among Palestinians. “I hope this game can pave the road to restoring the internal Palestinian relations and bring them back on track,” said Haniyeh, a former amateur player, as he watched the game in his Gaza City home along with two sons, a Cabinet minister and several bodyguards.

A spokesman for the Israeli Football Association, meanwhile, said Israel’s national team had no immediate plans to play in the Ram Stadium, but noted that Israeli and Palestinian players formed a team last year to face Real Madrid.

“Every time we are asked to show football can be a bridge to bring people together, we do so and we have done in the past,” Gil Lebanony said.

Blatter started the day at the headquarters of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, where he laid a wreath on the grave of Abbas’ predecessor, Yasser Arafat. The two men then opened a tournament of six women’s teams. Some of the female players wore headscarves with their uniforms.

Blatter then attended the Jordan-Palestine match at the 6,000-seat stadium in Ram, close to Israel’s West Bank separation barrier. The Palestinian team has existed for a decade, but until now had played its “home” games in Jordan and Qatar.

On Sunday morning, workers were putting the finishing touches on a $4 million renovation. A bulldozer smoothed a dirt approach road while workers hung banners naming the game’s sponsors.

The Palestinian team boasts players from Jerusalem, the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and Chile, but not all will play. Five of the team’s six Gazan players were granted permits by Israel to travel to the West Bank, but the team’s captain, Saeb Jundiyeh, was not.

“I am full of anger and sadness because I was denied being there for this historic event which I have always dreamed about,” Jundiyeh said.

He added that he was in phone contact with his teammates and would watch the match with friends and family in Gaza.

Israel and Egypt have virtually sealed off Gaza from the world since the Islamic militant Hamas seized control of the territory in June 2007. Gaza and the West Bank lie on opposite sides of Israel, and Gazans need Israeli permits to reach the West Bank.

Ronaldo is FIFPro player of the year. Cristiano Ronaldo has been voted player of the year by his fellow professionals at FIFPro.

The international players’ union, which has 57,500 members, announced on Monday that the Manchester United winger, who scored 42 goals last season when the Red Devils won both the Champions League and Premier League, had topped their poll.

“To be recognized by my fellow professional players worldwide coming from over 50,000 players is amazing,” the Portugal winger said.

Ronaldo is also a strong contender to win the FIFA award and the European Golden Ball organized by the French magazine France Football.

“I would like to thank my teammates and coaches and everyone involved at Man United and the national team, as well as my family and friends for their support,” Ronaldo said. “Thank you also to FIFPro for this award and for your work in protecting the interests and welfare of players around the world.”

Five of the Spanish stars who won the 2008 European Championship were named in FIFPro’s team-of-the-year lineup.

With all but one of the players coming from either the Spanish or English leagues, the lineup includes Real Madrid’s Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos, Barcelona’s Carles Puyol and Xavi Fernandez and Liverpool’s Fernando Torres.

Barcelona’s Argentina forward Lionel Messi is also in the team and Champions League winner Manchester United has Rio Ferdinand and Ronaldo.

Liverpool also has Steven Gerrard, John Terry is the only Chelsea player on the lineup and AC Milan’s Kaka is the lone star from Italy’s Serie A.

Bundesliga leading Hoffenheim takes on VfL Bochum. Hoffenheim’s dismantling of Hamburger SV in the Bundesliga has earned the team new respect from its peers - and perhaps installed some fear.

Hamburg, which won the European Cup in 1983, is the only founding member of the Bundesliga that has never been relegated since the league started 45 years ago.

Hoffenheim, backed by software billionaire Dietmar Hopp to rise from the third division to the top flight in two years, has no tradition and comes from a village with a population of fewer than 3,300 people.

But it was Hamburg that looked like a novice from the province in Sunday’s game, conceding three goals in 35 minutes to lose 3-0 and surrender the league lead to Hoffenheim, which returned to the top after also leading over the first two rounds.

“Hoffenheim is a very good team with a very good coach,” Hamburg coach Martin Jol said.

Directed by Brazilian midfielder Carlos Eduardo, Hoffenheim forwards Vedad Ibisevic, Chinedu Obasi and Demba Ba dazzled a tired-looking Hamburg team that simply looked overmatched.

Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said he recognized the threat from Hoffenheim, which has scored the most goals (24) and has the leading scorer, Ibisevic (10).

“Every team ahead of FC Bayern in the standings deserves our respect. And they (Hoffenheim) have the respect of Bayern,” said Rummenigge, whose club is fifth with 15 points after overcoming a two-goal deficit Saturday with a 4-2 home win over Wolfsburg.

Bayern captain Mark van Bommel predicted that Hoffenheim will still be prominent in the standings by the end of the season.

“I would not be surprised if they finished in the top six, maybe even in the top three,” he said.

Van Bommel’s teammate, Tim Borowski, described Hoffenheim as a “spectacular” team that has to be taken seriously.

Hoffenheim leads with 19 points, one ahead of Bayer Leverkusen, two in front of Hamburg and three more than Stuttgart.

Hoffenheim plays Wednesday against VfL Bochum, which lost 2-0 at Stuttgart after two late goals from Mario Gomez to be only one spot above the relegation zone, on goal difference.

Hoffenheim coach Ralf Rangnick is still trying to play down expectation.

“Of course, I don’t think we will be relegated with this team,” Rangnick said after Sunday’s game. “The quality of the youngsters is obvious but they shouldn’t believe everything they read in the newspaper.

“It’s extraordinary what has been happening here in the last two and a half years. We are a hungry team. But we should not change our goal and start thinking about the top part of the standings, and we don’t want to know what will be in May next year.”

Bayern, the defending champion, travels to Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday. Bayern rallied from a two-goal deficit to beat Wolfsburg 4-2, while Frankfurt had a second straight win by beating Energie Cottbus 3-2 after also coming back from two goals down.

Second-place Bayer Leverkusen, coming off a 2-0 win over Cologne, plays Tuesday at Werder Bremen, which drew 1-1 at Hannover.

In other games Tuesday, Wolfsburg hosts Borussia Moenchengladbach, Karlsruhe plays Schalke and Cottbus travels to Arminia Bielefeld.

On Wednesday, third-place Hamburg is at No. 4 Stuttgart, Hertha Berlin plays Hannover and Cologne hosts Borussia Dortmund.

Five Spanish Euro 2008 winners on FIFPro team.
Five of the Spanish stars who won the 2008 European Championship have been named in FIFPro’s team-of-the-year lineup, voted for by their fellow professionals.

With all but one of the players coming from either the Spanish or English leagues, the lineup includes Real Madrid’s Iker Casillas and Sergio Ramos, Barcelona’s Carles Puyol and Xavi Fernandez and Liverpool’s Fernando Torres.

Barcelona’s Argentina forward Lionel Messi is also in the team and Champions League winner Manchester United has Rio Ferdinand and Cristiano Ronaldo, who is one of the favorites for the FIFPro player-of-the-year award being announced later Monday.

Liverpool also has Steven Gerrard, John Terry is the only Chelsea player on the lineup and AC Milan’s Kaka is the lone star from Italy’s Serie A.

Inter held to 0-0 draw by 10-man Genoa. Inter Milan was held to a 0-0 draw by 10-man Genoa on Sunday, and Napoli and Udinese both won to join the three-time defending champions at the top of the Serie A standings.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic had chances for Inter but couldn’t find the target at the San Siro, even after Genoa midfielder Ivan Juric picked up his second yellow card on the hour mark.

“I’m always responsible for my team’s results, and in the second half some players still didn’t understand what they needed to do,” Inter coach Jose Mourinho said. “On Tuesday, I’ll discuss it with them and clear it up. We put Genoa at ease and two or three of my players were not up to the task.”

Napoli beat Lazio 1-0 in Rome with an own-goal by defender Sebastiano Siviglia, and Antonio Di Natale scored twice in Udinese’s 3-1 win over AS Roma, which lost its third straight match.

Roma coach Luciano Spalletti acknowledged that he may lose his job.

“It’s natural to feel at risk when things are not going well,” he said.

Udinese tops the table on goal difference with 17 points. Inter and Napoli also have 17 points. Surging AC Milan, which beat Atalanta 1-0 in Bergamo, and Fiorentina, which won 3-1 at Palermo, are next with 16.

Milan playmaker Kaka scored his second goal of the season in the 80th, lifting the ball over Atalanta goalkeeper Ferdinando Coppola after receiving a pass inside the area from Marco Borriello.

“There’s no use hiding it, Milan didn’t deserve to win,” Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “Atalanta played very well, with passion and rhythm, but we were very attentive and waited for our opponents to slow down to strike the winning blow.”

After losing its opening two games, Milan has won five and drawn once.

Alberto Gilardino scored his league-leading seventh goal and Adrian Mutu added two more scores for Fiorentina.

Gilardino opened the scoring controversially in the 19th, redirecting the ball in with his arm as he slid down at the edge of the box, with the referee apparently ruling the handball involuntary.

Mutu scored his first goal on a counterattack in the 42nd, then added another in the 62nd from the center of the area after Fabio Simplicio had pulled one back for Palermo.

Also, it was: Cagliari 2, Chievo Verona 0; Reggina 2, Lecce 0; and Sampdoria 2, Bologna 0.

On Saturday, Brazilian forward Amauri scored his third goal in three games to lead Juventus over Torino 1-0 in a derby. It was Juve’s first league victory in more than a month.

Also, Catania drew 1-1 at Siena.

Mourinho brought on forwards for all three of his substitutions - Julio Ricardo Cruz, Mario Balotelli and Victor Obinna - but Genoa’s defense held tight even though a man down.

Genoa threatened twice midway through the first half, with Argentine striker Diego Milito freeing himself for a dangerous shot in the 35th and Giandomenico Mesto missing the rebound. A minute later, Mesto hit the crossbar from 30 meters (yards).

“Inter was undisciplined and Genoa did what it had to do. At the end, I congratulated their coach and team,” Mourinho said. “They were very aware in defense.”

Inter midfielder Sulley Muntari was carried off on a stretcher in the 53rd with an apparent thigh muscle problem and Mourinho said he would miss Wednesday’s game at Fiorentina.

“We have problems in midfield right now,” Mourinho said, adding that he would leave two or three players home for the Fiorentina game as punishment for their performances.

Napoli went ahead in the 61st, with Siviglia deflecting in a cross from forward Ezequiel Lavezzi with his chest.

Lazio’s Goran Pandev hit the post in the 86th.

Roma was routed 4-0 by Inter last weekend and lost 1-0 to Chelsea in the Champions League on Tuesday. This time, the team was beaten by coach Luciano Spalletti’s former club.

Udinese forward Antonio Floro Flores earned a penalty that Di Natale converted in the 10th, then added a goal of his own in the 22nd, seven minutes after having a shot deflected off the post.

Di Natale scored again in the 52nd on a counterattack.

Roma argued to no avail for penalties on two occasions in the first half, and forward Mirko Vucinic was shown a yellow card for diving in the 29th.

Roma captain Francesco Totti converted a penalty in the 74th, his first goal this season following a slow start after knee surgery.