Inter Milan blew a two-goal to drop points at the top of Serie A as Bologna earned a 2-2 draw at the San Siro.

Inter looked set to move clear at the summit of the table after they burst into a 2-0 lead after just 13 minutes as Francesco Acerbi and Lautaro Martinez scored.

But mid-table Bologna hit back, with Bendetta Orsolini scoring from the penalty spot before the break and Joshua Zirkzee earned a point after the break.

The result was a big boost for Inter’s city rivals AC Milan, who play at Genoa later on Saturday and go three points ahead with a win.

Although the hosts made a fast start, it was Bologna that almost drew first blood as former Aberdeen midfielder Lewis Ferguson hit the post in an open start to the match.

But it was the hosts that soon took control as Acerbi headed home from Hakan Calhanoglu’s corner in the 11th minute.

Two minutes later it was 2-0 as Martinez doubled the lead in style, rocketing a 25-yard shot into the top corner for his 10th goal of the season, becoming just the third Inter player in history to reach double figures in the opening eight matches.

Bologna were shell-shocked, but they responded well and were awarded an 18th-minute penalty when VAR spotted an infringement at a corner, with Martinez ruled to have fouled Ferguson.

Orsolini converted from 12 yards, though Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer may be disappointed after he got a hand to it.

Inter should have restored their two-goal lead eight minutes before the break as both Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Calhanoglu found space in the area but could not get a shot away.

Bologna responded well after the break and levelled seven minutes after the restart.

Zirkzee got the ball on the edge of the area and wrong-footed Sommer, shooting into the near post to make it 2-2.

Inter thought they had regained the lead on the hour when Sanchez converted Carlos Augusto’s cross, but it was ruled out for offside.

Boss Simone Inzhagi’s frustration boiled over and he received a yellow card in protestations at refereeing decisions.

His mood did not improve as Martinez then flashed a header just wide from a corner as they pushed to regain the lead.

The pressure mounted in the final 10 minutes with Bologna goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski beating away Augusto’s shot before the same player headed over at the death.

Simone Inzaghi praised his Inter players who "play less" despite coming within minutes of being eliminated from the Coppa Italia on Tuesday.

The holders trailed Serie B side Parma 1-0 with just three minutes remaining at San Siro, before Lautaro Martinez equalised and Francesco Acerbi headed in the winner in extra time to save their blushes and send them through to the quarter-finals.

The irony of Acerbi heading in the winner was not lost on Inzaghi after the centre-back's effort against Monza in their previous game was ruled out by the referee, causing consternation among the Inter camp as his whistle meant that the VAR could not intervene on what appeared to be a questionable call.

Inzaghi was not in the mood to dwell on the weekend's 2-2 draw in Serie A, instead praising the players who came in for cup duty and, eventually, delivered.

"The whole world saw what happened in Monza, but we were only interested in this game," the Nerazzurri head coach said. "We were doing fairly well even if we had to move the ball better. Then with their goal it got complicated, but I had an excellent response from those who play less.

"I would have liked to avoid extra time, but last year too with Empoli [3-2 win after extra time] it was difficult."

Inter trailed to a superb strike from substitute Stanko Juric in the 38th minute, and did not have a shot on target until Martinez forced an equaliser in the 88th.

In the second half of extra time, Acerbi reacted to a punched clearance from veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon to head the ball over the 44-year-old and into the net.

Parma were the equals of their hosts for large parts of the contest, but Inzaghi insisted he was impressed by his team's effort.

"Those who have played the least have given excellent answers, we must continue like this," he added. "In the Champions League we have gone beyond expectations, in the league we lost points at the start, but there are many games to go."

Romelu Lukaku did not feature, but his coach believes the Belgium striker will have plenty to offer once they can get him fit and playing regularly.

"He remains fundamental for us," Inzaghi said. "He had an injury and had problems managing it. Saturday [v Monza] he was limited by his inflammatory problem. Tomorrow he will continue to rest, then day-by-day we would like to bring him back to the top. If we could have done that before, it would have given us the extra points we are missing."

Inter have completed a season-long loan deal for Lazio defender Francesco Acerbi.

The Italy international will spend the remainder of the 2022-23 campaign at San Siro, where he will wear the number 15 shirt.

Inter had been targeting Acerbi for several weeks, with Simone Inzaghi keen to strengthen his options in the heart of the Nerazzurri defence.

Club president Steven Zhang reportedly blocked the deal initially due to concerns over increasing the wage bill, but has since given the green light for the 34-year-old to join the ranks.

Acerbi is Inter's seventh signing in a window that has also seen the arrivals of Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Andre Onana, and the return of Romelu Lukaku.

The centre-half brings a wealth of experience to the back line, having also appeared for Chievo, Milan and Sassuolo in Serie A, while chalking up over 30 appearances in each of the last eight seasons.

Acerbi, who was yet to feature this term under Maurizio Sarri, was also part of the Italy's victorious squad at Euro 2020, playing in three of the Azzurri's seven matches.

He could make his Inter debut against former side Milan when the rivals lock horns on Saturday.

Paris Saint-Germain have been open about wanting three more new signings before the transfer window closes.

PSG head coach Christophe Galtier also explained that among those was the desire to bring in a forward.

The French champions have already sealed the services of Renato Sanches, Nordi Mukiele, Hugo Ekitike, Vitinha and Nuno Mendes during the off-season.

TOP STORY – PSG IN TALKS WITH MAN UTD'S RASHFORD

PSG have opened talks with Marcus Rashford's representatives about joining the Ligue 1 club from Manchester United, according to L'Equipe.

The England international striker is contracted with United until 2023, having signed a four-year deal in 2019 with the option to extend by a further year.

Sky Sports, however, claims that PSG are unlikely to follow up on their initial interest, having first enquired about Rashford last week.

ROUND-UP

– Manchester City are targeting Atletico Madrid's Brazilian Renan Lodi as they look to add a new left-back, according to The Telegraph. City want to bolster their options in the position following Oleksandr Zinchenko's departure for Arsenal. City are also considering Arsenal left-back Kieran Tierney, claims 90min.

– Foot Mercato reports that Italian champions Inter are looking at Nice defender Jean-Clair Todibo as a possible replacement for Martin Skriniar, should he leave. Todibo also has interest from PSG and Chelsea . Inter have also been linked to Borussia Dortmund's Swiss defender Manuel Akanji along with Lazio veteran Francesco Acerbi.

– Chelsea's Emerson Palmieri is drawing interest from both Nottingham Forest and Atalanta, according to the Evening Standard. The 28-year-old left-back is being squeezed out at Stamford Bridge following Marc Cucurella's arrival.

– Napoli and Argentina international forward Giovanni Simeone have reached a verbal agreement, reports Sky Sport Italia. Simeone is set to join Napoli on loan from Hellas Verona, but Sky Sport Italia claims Juventus are prepared to poach him at the last minute.

Jose Mourinho has been accused of lacking respect by Roma's rivals Lazio after he claimed their winning goal against Spezia should not have stood.

Roma and Lazio are locked in a battle to secure a top-six finish in Serie A, and Maurizio Sarri's team sit level on points with the Giallorossi after earning a last-gasp 4-3 win over Spezia on Saturday, while Mourinho's men dropped points in a goalless draw with Bologna a day later.

Having spent much of their match trailing, Lazio snatched a thrilling win when Francesco Acerbi flicked home in the final minute.

After Ciro Immobile became just the 10th player to reach 150 Serie A goals for one club earlier in the match, Acerbi's winner was controversial as it appeared he turned home from an offside position, leading Mourinho to take aim at the decision to let the goal stand.

Subsequently, Lazio have hit back.

"The fact that in 2022 a coach of another team repeatedly refers to presumed referee favours to competing teams demonstrates some things," the statement began.

"That Lazio is obsessively in their thoughts more than other coveted professional goals; that, as often happens, one looks into other people's homes to divert attention from missed results and sensational episodes that have occurred in one's own home, in one's favour, under the eyes of all.

"Despite the need to evolve the image of football in Italy, some players are stuck with the constant repetition of accusations against the referees and the VAR, [and] these offensive attitudes towards referees are too often overlooked.

"The Lazio Sports Society rejects the criticisms and insinuations. It continues to believe that values are demonstrated on the pitch and not in the television salons. Lazio will never lend itself to being anyone's alibi or scapegoat and will assert its reasons in the appropriate forums." 

In accusing Mourinho of lacking respect for referees and other clubs, Lazio also claimed not to have commented on several refereeing decisions which they perceived to have gone against them in recent weeks.

These incidents included a potential foul on Acerbi in the build-up to Sandro Tonali's late winner for Milan at the Stadio Olimpico, and an alleged elbow by Roger Ibanez when Lazio met Roma in March.

"The company's line continues to be that of not discussing the decisions taken on the pitch, even when it comes to obvious episodes that occurred to the detriment of the Biancoceleste team, such as [Sandro] Tonali's foul on Acerbi in Lazio-Milan on the occasion of the goal, or the elbow from [Roger] Ibanez on [Sergej] Milinkovic-Savic in the [Rome] derby," the statement continued.

"[These are] decisive episodes on which we have chosen silence, out of respect for the referees on the field and the VAR, respect that others have not shown and continue not to demonstrate."

The capital clubs are separated by virtue of their head-to-head record with three games left, with Roma boasting the advantage after winning 3-0 in March.

Robert Lewandowski moved outright third on the list of all-time Champions League goalscorers as he helped Bayern Munich to a convincing 4-1 win against Lazio in Tuesday's last-16 first leg.

Bayern have stuttered domestically with a draw and defeat in their past two Bundesliga matches, but they eased to victory at the Stadio Olimpico, scoring three of their four goals in the first half.

Jamal Musiala and Leroy Sane put the holders in complete control after prolific striker Lewandowski had opened the scoring with his 72nd goal in the competition, moving him behind only Cristiano Ronaldo (134) and Lionel Messi (119).

Francesco Acerbi's own goal early in the second half gave Lazio an even bigger mountain to climb and, while Joaquin Correa did pull one back with a fine solo goal, Hansi Flick's men are in complete control ahead of the return tie in Bavaria on March 17.

The hosts, competing in the knockout stages of the competition for the first time in 21 years, gifted Bayern the lead inside nine minutes as Lewandowski pounced on Mateo Musacchio's underhit backpass and rounded Pepe Reina for a simple finish.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic was unfortunate not then to win a Lazio penalty and Bayern were soon instead two up through Musiala's drilled effort from the edge of the box following a smart team move.

Lewandowski was denied by Reina's leg, but the world champions added a third after some more lax play from Lazio, Patric losing the ball to Kingsley Coman, who fired in a shot that Reina could only parry to Sane.

Simone Inzaghi's side were further behind 62 seconds after half-time as Acerbi turned Sane's cross into his own net inside the six-yard box under pressure from Alphonso Davies.

But Lazio extended the Champions League record for both scoring and conceding in consecutive matches to 13 thanks to Correa's calm finish past Manuel Neuer after slaloming through the opposition defence.

Correa was denied a quickfire second by a good Neuer save and Ciro Immobile was also thwarted by the Bayern goalkeeper, although Lazio's deficit did not increase as Reina produced another good stop to keep out Lewandowski 10 minutes from time.