AC Milan extended their lead over Inter Milan to five points on top of the table with a win over Empoli. On the other hand, Juventus continued their impressive run with a 3-1 win over Spezia.
With rivals and neighbours Inter Milan not playing until Sunday, the Rossoneri took the opportunity to stretch their lead to five points at the top of the table. French defender Pierre Kalulu handed Milan the lead in the 19th minute with an arrowing strike into the bottom corner.
The hosts had a few nervy moments as they struggled to maintain the tempo of the match. They struggled to create enough clear-cut chances to put the game to bed in the second-half, and Mike Maignan was called into action and dished out fine saves to retain his team’s lead.
Milan held on to secure a successive 1-0 win, and Stefano Pioli’s side are now unbeaten in nine games in all competitions. Despite not being at their best, Milan continue to pile the pressure and are closing on their first Scudetto win since 2012.
“Nine games [left] is a lot. Twenty-seven points [to play for] are a lot. All the top five are in with a chance of winning the title,”
Pioli told Sky Sport Italia.
On the other hand, Juventus climbed up to fourth place with Alvaro Morata’s double securing their third consecutive win. An own goal from Sampdoria’s Maya Yoshida and the Spaniard’s sweetly-struck penalty in the 34th minute helped the visitors take a comfortable two-goal lead.
Sampdoria took the game to Juventus in the second half and even won a penalty after Adrien Rabiot’s handball, but goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny pulled out a wonderful save to keep his side in the ascendancy.
Substitute Abdelhamid Sabiri’s deflected free-kick goal did help the home side pull one back. However, Morata arrived at the back post four minutes later to get his second goal of the night and put the game to bed.
2021/22 Serie A top 6
| # | Team | Matches played | Goal difference | Points |
| 1 | AC Milan | 29 | +26 | 63 |
| 2 | Napoli | 29 | +30 | 60 |
| 3 | Inter Milan | 28 | +38 | 59 |
| 4 | Juventus | 29 | +19 | 56 |
| 5 | Atalanta | 28 | +19 | 48 |
| 6 | AS Roma | 29 | +12 | 48 |
