No goals and three red cards but Inter impress

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ROME, Feb 20, 2010 (AFP) - Nine-man Inter Milan stretched their lead at the top of Serie A to eight points after a 0-0 draw with 10-man Sampdoria in a nasty, edgy encounter at the San Siro on Saturday.

Sampdoria played around 35 minutes with a two-man advantage and 25 minutes with one extra player and yet never showed either the urgency or ingenuity needed to break down the champions.

Inter lost both centre-backs Walter Samuel and Ivan Cordoba in the first-half while Samp's Giampaolo Pazzini was dismissed 17 minutes from time.

Jose Mourinho's team may not have won but they looked more likely than their visitors to do so.

But the club were so angry with the referee's handling of the game that they refused to send either Mourinho or anyone else to speak to the press.

Sampdoria coach Luigi Delneri was happy with the point despite his team's negative performance.

"No way am I disappointed with the result, I'm satisfied with the point," he said.

"When we had the numerical superiority we tried to move the ball, put in crosses and shoot from distance but they defended well, even with nine."

Chances were at a premium throughout the game but it wasn't the football that dominated the headlines.

Samuel had already been booked when he hauled down Nicola Pozzi on 31 minutes and was red carded.

He had been the last defender and as Pozzi tried to go round him he lifted his arm to block the Sampdoria frontman as he got his body between man and ball.

It wasn't clear whether he was dismissed for an elbow or for a professional foul.

From the free-kick Cordoba was booked for encroachment and just seven minutes later he received a second yellow card after arriving late on Pozzi.

Mourinho was incredulous on the touchline, making a sign that he was in handcuffs and he laughed in bemusement 12 minutes into the second period when Samuel Eto'o was justly booked for a dive in the box.

In all this time there had hardly been a chance of note and Inter's nine men were holding out without too many alarms.

Everyone was walking a tightrope and sure enough Pazzini was given his marching orders for a second booking for what barely even seemed a foul on Dejan Stankovic.

With only 19 players on the pitch Inter finally fashioned a chance as Goran Pandev fed Eto'o whose shot was too close to Samp goalkeeper Marco Storari, who parried.

Sampdoria may have had far more of the ball but Inter had always looked the more dangerous on the counter while Julio Cesar had a trouble free night in the hosts' goal.

The point did at least move Samp up to fourth ahead of Sunday's matches.

Earlier in the day Robert Acquafresca scored a brace as Genoa boosted their Champions League hopes with a comprehensive 3-0 rout of lowly 10-man Udinese.

Rodrigo Palacio added the third after Christian Zapata had been dismissed early into the second period for a second booking.

The victory moves Genoa to within two points of fourth spot and right in the heart of a group of five teams battling it out for the final Champions League qualification place who are separated by just three points.

Udinese, meanwhile, remain just a point above the relegation zone ahead of Sunday's full programme of matches.

Acquafresca opened the scoring on the half hour mark, mopping up the loose ball after Udinese goalkeeper Samir Handanovic failed to hold onto Giuseppe Sculli's shot.

The striker doubled his and Genoa's account eight minutes into the second half, picking himself up after he was fouled by Andrea Coda in the area to stroke home the spot kick.

Zapata was then dismissed for his second yellow card and Palacio rounded off the scoring as he headed home Sculli's cross from close range.