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Inter were shocked to go two goals down at home to relegation-battling Pisa but fought back to earn a 6-2 win at San Siro on Friday, as they continue to set the pace at the top of Serie A.
Stefano Moreo scored twice to put Pisa 2-0 up, the first thanks to a howler from the goalkeeper Yann Sommer, but Inter were ahead by the break. Piotr Zielinski converted a penalty and Lautaro Martínez and Francesco Pio Esposito both scored with headers in six minutes just before half-time.
Inter missed plenty of chances to put Pisa away in the second half before Federico Dimarco found the net eight minutes from time, with Ange-Yoan Bonny and Henrikh Mkhitaryan netting late on to add some gloss to the victory.
Inter move to 52 points, six ahead of second-placed Milan, who are away at Roma on Sunday, with champions Napoli third on 43 points before they face Juventus. Pisa are bottom of the standings on 14 points.
In Ligue 1, Bradley Barcola’s deft chipped finish sent champions Paris Saint-Germain back to the top with a 1-0 win at Auxerre. The 23-year-old winger was the main threat as PSG peppered the home goal throughout the 90 minutes. But it looked as if relegation-threatened Auxerre would hold out for a 0-0 draw against their illustrious visitors for the second year in a row, thanks in part to an inspired display by goalkeeper Donovan Léon.
Victory took PSG back above Lens, who could return to the top with a victory away to third-placed Marseille on Saturday. Auxerre remain mired in the relegation zone, six points from safety.
PSG were off to a blistering start and could have been three goals up inside 10 minutes. Barcola was twice thwarted by Léon, while a sliding Sinaly Diomandé blocked Georgian winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s goalbound effort.
Léon was in action again just before the half-hour to parry a close-range header from Gonçalo Ramos. The goalkeeper also made a double save with his legs in a chaotic goalmouth scramble to deny Kvaratskhelia and teenage talent Ibrahim Mbaye.
The chances kept coming after the break as Barcola flashed a shot wide and Kvaratskhelia’s effort was deflected just past a post. Barcola also saw a chip drop agonisingly on to the roof of the net. For Auxerre, Danny Namaso and Lassine Sinayoko had speculative shots that failed to trouble Lucas Chevalier in the PSG goal.
Barcola was the main menace and another dart down the wing saw him chip a cross beyond Léon, rashly dashing from his box, but the substitute Désiré Doué somehow prodded wide of an empty goal from inside the six-yard box. Barcola was not to be denied, though, as the Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembélé sent him clear after Auxerre were caught on the counterattack following a corner.
In La Liga, struggling Levante defeated Elche 3-2 after Alan Matturro’s winner six minutes into stoppage time. The only Bundesliga game of the night was a 0-0 draw between St Pauli and Hamburg.
