Napoli

AC Milan striker Rafael Leao netted twice to give his side a superb 4-0 away victory over leaders Napoli in Serie A on Sunday, moving Stefano Pioli's side ...

It will allow us to study this match and see where we did well or could've done better," Pioli added. Later this month, they will also play against each other in the Champions League quarterfinals. [Brahim Diaz](http://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/246532/Brahim-Díaz) sent a through ball to Leao, who took a touch and chipped it elegantly over Napoli goalkeeper [Alex Meret](http://www.espn.com/soccer/player/_/id/209746/Alex-Meret). This is a fine win, but it is only one match," Pioli told DAZN. "This is only the first step. Napoli are 20 points clear at the top.

Leão (x2), Díaz and Saelemaekers the scorers in a magnificent display against the league leaders.

This result at the Maradona is sure to give the Rossoneri a huge confidence boost ahead of the final stretch of the season and takes AC Milan to third in [the table](https://www.acmilan.com/en/season/active/standings/all) on 51 points. The Rossoneri had the first chance of the second half (50’): Leão launched a counter-attack and Bennacer played the ball on for Giroud, who shot just wide with a left-footed angled drive. The match at the Maradona got off to a fast start with a chance at either end in the third minute: after Simeone had failed to direct the ball on target from Di Lorenzo’s cross, Theo raced forward and pulled the ball back for Díaz, whose finish was straight at Meret. But then came the Rossoneri’s third of the night (59’): Tonali robbed Zieliński of the ball and picked out Leão, who breezed past Rrahmani and smashed home to make it 3-0. [Stefano Pioli's](https://www.acmilan.com/en/teams/men-first-team/coach) return to the 4-2-3-1; Ismaël Bennacer started further up the field, while Krunić was inserted into the double pivot alongside Tonali. Then, the Portuguese got his second of the night after the break before Saelemaekers added a fourth for the Rossoneri.

Milan dealt a psychological blow to Napoli ahead of their Champions League quarter-final meeting, with a resounding 4-0 Serie A win.

Milan’s left-back [Theo Hernandez](https://theathletic.com/football/player/theo-hernandez-Kw8dlLxh5HDhk9JV/) consistently made inverted runs to open passing lanes from the back three to Leao. [Rafael Leao](https://theathletic.com/football/player/rafael-leao-oUZsppBnKSqUIPA0/), albeit a right-footer playing off the left, is a truer ‘winger’ than Diaz. All five of their counter-attacks, four of them ending in shots, came in the second half. The other two are in a [Champions League](https://theathletic.com/football/champions-league/) quarter-final, with the first leg at San Siro next Wednesday and the return in Naples the following Tuesday. The champions-elect were forced to cross and play big switches to wide areas — a less dangerous ploy for Milan in Osimhen’s absence. Tonali often runs with the ball and restarts the action,” Di Canio explained. Milan maintained their midfield balance with Brahim Diaz, who lined up as the right-winger but played like the No 10 the back of his shirt would suggest. they found the man in the middle, we went to playing man against man, we did not get along well with the positions,” said Spalletti. In January, pundit Paolo Di Canio — who played for both these clubs, among many others — described Milan central midfielders Bennacer and Sandro Tonali as “a perfect tandem”. In the end, they used both. [Piotr Zielinski](https://theathletic.com/football/player/piotr-zielinski-YUImLvI1r2JCsAJH/) forward from midfield to make a 4-4-2 alongside [Giovanni Simeone](https://theathletic.com/football/player/giovanni-simeone-dITGqCCmaV9VaHyG/). [Serie A](https://theathletic.com/football/serie-a/) game against [AC Milan](https://theathletic.com/football/team/milan/) was the first of three meetings between the sides in 17 days.

Barcelona 9 points ahead of Real Madrid in La Liga, Bayern Munich score vital 4-2 victory against Borussia Dortmund - Anadolu Agency.

[Anadolu Agency website contains only a portion of the news stories offered to subscribers in the AA News Broadcasting System (HAS), and in summarized form. Lens and Olympic Marseille were behind the Parisians with 60 points. Their Turkish player Hakan Calhanoglu was not included in the squad due to an injury. Barcelona are 12 points ahead of Real Madrid in the Spanish La Liga, while Bayern Munich got a vital 4-2 victory against Borussia Dortmund in the German Bundesliga. He put a total 17 in the net this season. At the end of week 28, leaders Napoli have 71 points and are followed by Lazio with 55 points, Milan with 51 points, and Inter with 50 points. At the end of week 26, Bayern Munich, with 55 points, was followed by Borussia Dortmund with 53 points, Union Berlin with 51 points, Freiburg with 47 points, and Leipzig with 45 points. At the end of week 29 in the Premier League, Arsenal, continued to lead with 72 points, followed by Manchester City with 64 points (one game to play), Newcastle United with 50 points (two games to play), and Manchester United (two games to play). In week 28 of the Italian Serie A, AC Milan beat leaders Napoli 4-0 in an away game. Paris Saint-Germain remain in a six-point lead despite their second loss in a row in week 29 of the French Ligue 1. In week 27 of the Spanish La Liga, leaders Barcelona defeated Elche 4-0 in an away game. Arsenal are on a seven-win streak in the English Premier League, while Napoli maintain their 16-point lead in the Italian Serie A despite a 0-4 loss to AC Milan.

If this was just the antipasto, Napoli should be concerned about what AC Milan will serve up for...

Leao then did the rest by chipping in over Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret. "We're happy with the performance but it's just one game," Milan coach Stefano Pioli said. Milan host Napoli at the San Siro in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals in 10 days, then Napoli host the second leg six days later. That will be a very balanced contest." Napoli's only other losses in the Italian league this season both came by scores of 1-0, to Inter Milan in January and to Lazio a month ago. In the first of three matchups between Milan and Napoli this month, the defending Serie A champions routed this season's runaway leaders 4-0 on Sunday ahead of two more clashes in the Champions League quarter-finals.