Pazzini winner keeps his side in touch with leaders AC Milan

ROME: Inter Milan kept up their title challenge with a hard-fought 2-1 victory at Fiorentina on Wednesday.

An own goal from Michele Camporese gave the champions the lead before Manuel Pasquale’s cross trickled over the line to restore parity.

But Giampaolo Pazzini struck the winner from close range to keep Leonardo’s team in the scudetto hunt.

The victory moved them up to third in Serie A, five points behind leaders and city rivals AC Milan, and it was the perfect response after the criticism directed at the team in the Italian press after Sunday’s 1-0 loss at Juventus.

This was Inter’s eighth win in 10 league games under the Brazilian coach, who joined in late December.

Leonardo shouted himself hoarse during the game and consequently sent his assistant, Giuseppe Baresi, to speak to the media afterwards.

“After the defeat in Turin this game was more important than ever,” admitted Baresi.

“It’s never easy to win in Florence but we showed we’re in good form.

“It’s an important win, it was vital to get the three points tonight. The team really wanted it after the Juve defeat.”

Fiorentina coach Sinisa Mihajlovic, the former Inter assistant, said the visitors were simply too clinical.

“Fortunately we don’t play against Inter every Sunday. If we’d played someone else we’d have won,” he said.

“But we didn’t deserve to lose, we created a lot of chances whereas they had two chances and scored two goals.

“But when you play the big teams you only need to make one mistake and you pay dearly.”

Inter went ahead after six minutes when Maicon’s cross was diverted into his own net by Michele Camporese but mid-table Fiorentina levelled on 33 minutes when Manuel Pasqual’s ball into the box crept in at the far post without being touched.

Leonardo handed a first start to Japanese left back Yuto Nagatomo and had Dejan Stankovic fit again after injury but Inter still laboured until Pazzini turned in Samuel Eto’o’s low cross 17 minutes into the second half.

The Inter game was rearranged because of their involvement in December’s Club World Cup.

Genoa also beat city rivals and fellow mid-table side Sampdoria 1-0 on Wednesday in a game which had been postponed because of snow in December.

Brazilian Rafinha grabbed the goal 10 minutes into the second half in one of Serie A’s most colourful and heated derbies.