Inter Milan go in search of the first of successive wins they need to wrap up the Serie A title on Sunday.

Cagliari are the visitors to San Siro and victory will mean Simone Inzaghi’s men can wrap up their first Scudetto in three years with a three-point return against their city rivals AC Milan in their following match on April 22.

Inter maintained their 14-point advantage over second-placed Milan on Monday, with Davide Frattesi’s late winner completing a come-from-behind victory at an Udinese side who had won just once at home all season.

Inzaghi had an eye on the remaining seven fixtures after that match when he said: “We’re playing clubs fighting against relegation or for the top spots… We can’t let our concentration slip.”

The Nerazzurri have won 12 and drawn one of their 13 matches since the turn of the year and have been beaten only once in the competition since the start of the season – a shock home loss to struggling Sassuolo in September the only blemish in an impressive campaign.

However, the leaders, who have scored in every match, will be without top goalscorer Lautaro Martinez against Cagliari because of suspension.

The Sardinians’ knack of picking up points from losing positions has aided their bid for survival.

Ten points from their last five matches have lifted Cagliari four points clear of the relegation zone as they bid to avoid an immediate return to the second tier of Italian football.

The last time they won this contest was in 2016 as two goals in the final 19 minutes turned the contest on its head against an Inter side who finished fourth, a distant 24 points behind champions Juventus.

However, Claudio Ranieri’s team are not at their best away from home in the current campaign.

They have picked up just seven points from their 15 games and netted a league-low nine goals on their travels.

Inter Milan opened up a 12-point lead at the top of Serie A by thumping Atalanta 4-0 at San Siro.

Matteo Darmian, Lautaro Martinez, Federico Dimarco and Davide Frattesi were on target as Inter extended their unbeaten league record to 20 games.

Simone Inzaghi’s side appear in an increasingly unassailable position with 12 games left to play.

Atalanta were left to rue the presence of VAR after Charles De Ketelaere found the net with a blistering half-volley after 10 minutes.

Benjamin Pavard’s poor pass put Inter in trouble and Mario Pasalic’s shot was pushed out by Yann Sommer.

The ball fell to De Ketelaere who buried it in emphatic fashion, but not before Alessandro Bastoni’s attempted clearance had brushed the arm of Aleksey Miranchuk.

By the letter of the law it was handball, but the faintest of touches did not deviate the ball and Atalanta had reason to feel aggrieved.

Miranchuk was off target from Dimarco’s weak clearance before Inter had their own goal chalked off.

Nicolo Barella was clearly in an offside position before advancing to round Marco Carnesecchi and finish confidently.

Martinez had a first sighting of goal – wasted in uncustomary fashion – but Inter hit the front after 26 minutes.

Carnesecchi stopped Henrikh Mkhitaryan from reaching Martinez’s defence-splitting pass, but the ball fell straight at the feet of Darmian, who rolled it in to an unguarded net.

It was Darmian’s first Inter goal since January 2023, a Coppa Italia winner against Atalanta, and the full-back would have had a second almost instantly but for Carnesecchi’s legs.

Martinez smashed the crossbar after Dimarco dispossessed Pasalic on the edge of the area, but the Argentinian did not have to wait long for his 26th goal of the season.

Carnesecchi held up Dimarco but the ball was recycled and Martinez unleashed from the edge of the box, setting his swerving effort outside the post before nestling just inside it.

Dimarco was denied at the start of the second period and the contest was effectively ended in bizarre fashion after 54 minutes.

An assistant referee flagged that the ball was out of play before Denzel Dumfries’ cut-back clipped the arm of Hans Hateboer.

Again it was the lightest of touches but, after it was ruled that the ball had stayed in, a penalty was awarded.

Carnesecchi parried Martinez’s spot-kick but Dimarco, who had possibly just encroached into the area, swept home the rebound.

Two substitutes combined for Inter’s fourth after 71 minutes as Alexis Sanchez’s quickly-taken free-kick found the head of Frattesi at the near post.

Atalanta remain in fifth place, two points from a Champions League spot.

Inter Milan extended their lead at the top of Serie A to five points after Davide Frattesi sealed a dramatic late 2-1 win over Verona at the San Siro.

Inter looked set to have to settle for a draw after an early strike from Lautaro Martinez was cancelled out by Thomas Henry in the 74th minute.

But in a wild finish, Frattesi netted in the third minute of added time with a goal Verona claimed should have been disallowed for an earlier foul by Alessandro Bastoni.

Verona’s Darko Lazovic was sent off for protesting to the referee, but there was still time for the visitors to win a penalty in the 10th minute of added time, which Henry duly fired against a post.

In an equally action-packed clash at Frosinone, Monza ended a run of three games without a win as they clung on for a 3-2 victory over the hosts, who fought back from three goals down but had Pierluigi Frattali sent off in the 75th minute.

Fiorentina’s run of three straight wins came to a jolting end at Sassuolo, for whom Andrea Pinamonti’s ninth minute strike proved enough to end a run of six league games without a victory.

Cagliari remain rooted in the relegation zone despite Gaetano Oristanio’s 68th-minute effort salvaging a point in a 1-1 draw at Lecce, who led through Valentin Gendrey’s first-half opener.

Real Madrid had to be patient before seeing off fourth-tier Arandina in the last 32 of the Copa del Rey, with Joselu, Brahim Diaz and Rodrygo all scoring in the second half.

The hosts grabbed a late consolation through a Nacho own goal to make the final score 3-1 in a game that was also notable for the long-awaited debut of Real’s 18-year-old Arda Guler.

Two goals in the last half hour from Memphis Depay spared Atletico Madrid’s blushes as they edged to a 3-1 win at third-tier Lugo.

The hosts had briefly threatened to cause an upset when Leandro Antonelli cancelled out Angel Correa’s early strike for the visitors.

Goals from Daley Blind and Yan Couto saw Girona emerge unscathed with a 2-0 win at Segunda Division side Elche, while there were also wins for Getafe, Alaves and Real Vallecano.

Golden Lion’s 8,000-mile round trip to face Ligue 1 Lille turned sour as they were mauled 12-0 in the Coupe de France.

The Martinique champions, one of a number of teams from overseas territories eligible to play in the competition, were swept aside with both Jonathan David and Edon Zhegova scoring hat-tricks.

Third tier Sochaux pulled off a shock 2-1 win over Ligue 1 strugglers Lorient thanks to an added time penalty from Issouf Macalou.

Nice needed penalties to see off second-tier Auxerre after a goalless draw, while Brest edged past Angers and there were wins for Montpellier and Strasbourg over lower-tier opposition.

Verona’s Thomas Henry missed a last-gasp penalty in a dramatic finish at San Siro as Serie A leaders Inter hung on to a 2-1 victory.

Henry had cancelled out Lautaro Martinez’s 13th-minute opener with 16 minutes left only for Davide Frattesi to apparently win the game for the hosts in injury time.

However, a lengthy VAR check saw Verona, who had Darko Lazovic sent off, awarded a penalty, from which the unfortunate Henry struck a post.

Inter have never lost at home to Verona but it was the visitors who created the first real chance, Cyril Ngonge playing the ball in from the right for Tomas Suslov, who was still at a tight angle when he sent in a shot that was blocked by keeper Yann Sommer.

Inter, looking to return to winning ways after drawing with Genoa, scored the opener from their first real opening, carving the Verona defence apart.

Marcus Thuram’s deft touch played in Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who drove towards the edge of the box before teeing up Martinez for a comfortable finish into the bottom corner.

Inter continued to have most of the possession for the remainder of the first half but their final ball was disappointing and the best chance fell to Verona’s Milan Djuric, whose header was straight at Sommer.

Martinez thought he had scored a second for Inter three minutes into the second half, finding the net after Francesco Acerbi had headed on Mkhitaryan’s free-kick, but the linesman’s flag denied him.

There did not appear to be a great deal of threat from Verona until Henry scored the equaliser with his first touch after coming off the bench.

Marko Arnautovic wanted a foul for a challenge from Giangiacomo Magnani but the referee played on and Ondrej Duda’s cross from the right flew past Sommer off Henry’s knee.

Inter immediately set about trying to restore their lead and came agonisingly close in the 79th minute. A free-kick clipped the shoulder of Juan David Cabal, drawing a smart save from Lorenzo Montipo, with the ball just evading Arnautovic at the back post.

A frustrated Martinez then sent a header straight at the keeper while Arnautovic was unable to get his head on Acerbi’s high cross with the goal gaping.

But three minutes into injury time, Inter found the goal they craved. Alessandro Bastoni’s thunderous volley struck the bar, Nicolo Barella followed up with a well-struck shot that Montipo could not hold and substitute Frattesi tapped in to spark jubilant scenes.

Lazovic was shown a second yellow card in the aftermath but there was still time for another big twist when a VAR review saw Matteo Darmian penalised for kicking Magnani’s foot, only for Henry to agonisingly miss the target.

Inter Milan were forced to settle for second place in Champions League Group D after a 0-0 draw with leaders Real Sociedad at San Siro.

Last year’s runners-up needed a win to clinch a place among the top seeds heading into the knockout stage but could not break down their impressive Spanish opponents.

A second draw between the sides in the group stage left them locked together with 12 points, but La Real – who conceded just twice in their six matches – topped the pool on goal difference.

The draw did mean both teams kept up their impressive recent runs, with Inter having now gone 14 games without defeat.

Real Sociedad are now unbeaten in eight and have still only lost to Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid in all competitions this season.

And it was the visitors who dominated possession early on but, other than a couple of promising runs from Take Kubo, they failed to seriously test the visiting defence.

Inter were happy to hit on the break and they came closest to scoring in a first half of few chances.

The lively Marcus Thuram caused problems, and his surging run created an opening for Henrikh Mkhitaryan, but his goalbound effort was brilliantly cleared by Sociedad defender Hamari Traore.

Federico Dimarco then forced a save out of visiting goalkeeper Alex Remiro just before the interval.

Davide Frattesi fired over 10 minutes into the second half after La Real did not deal with a long throw, before Juan Cuadrado drove narrowly wide.

Simone Inzaghi brought on top-scorer Lautaro Martinez, midfielder Nicolo Barella and Marko Arnautovic with 25 minutes to go as Inter chased a winner which would have clinched top spot.

But they were forced into some defending five minutes later, with former Manchester United defender Matteo Darmian blocking an effort from Arsen Zakharyan before Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer smothered Mikel Oyarzabal’s shot.

Real Sociedad thought they had a penalty with 15 minutes left when Kubo went down in the area but a VAR review led to referee Sandro Scharer overturning his decision.

Sommer had to save from Oyarzabal again to keep Inter’s hopes alive.

Inter poured forward as they looked for a late winner and they created a stoppage-time chance for Martinez. But the Argentina World Cup winner opted to go for goal himself from a tight angle instead of looking for a team-mate and and he could only lash his shot high over the crossbar.

Inter Milan stormed back from three goals down to draw 3-3 away to Benfica after Joao Mario’s first-half hat-trick.

The Portuguese international bagged a brace inside the first 15 minutes and netted a third just after the half-hour mark to put Benfica on course for their first win in the group stages.

Inter Milan, who had already qualified, sparked a second-half fightback when Marko Arnautovic pulled a goal back six minutes after the break before Davide Frattesi’s 58th-minute goal gave the away side more hope.

The comeback was complete with 18 minutes to go when Alexis Sanchez netted a penalty before Antonio Silva saw red late on for Benfica.

The Portuguese side opened the scoring in the fifth minute after a looped ball into the box was headed down by Casper Tengstedt into the path of Mario, who lashed home from close range.

Inter almost had an equaliser five minutes later but Kristjan Asllani’s effort from outside the box was well saved by Anatoliy Trubin.

The hosts doubled their lead in the 15th minute when Tengstedt capitalised on some lazy Inter possession and drilled a low ball into the box which fell nicely for Mario to poke home.

Benfica made it three in the 34th minute and Tengstedt was once again the creator, this time he lifted a ball into the six-yard box and Mario was on hand to pounce and hit the first Champions League hat-trick of his career.

Inter started the second period with much more intent than the first and were denied when Carlos Augusto’s powerful effort was turned behind by Trubin and the Ukrainian shot stopper was on hand to push Sanchez’s free-kick over the crossbar a couple of minutes later.

The away side cut the deficit to two goals in the 51st minute when Yann Aurel Bisseck’s header was pushed into the path of Arnautovic who prodded in from close range.

Inter grabbed their second just before the hour mark when Francesco Acerbi’s cross was wonderfully volleyed home by Frattesi to make it 3-2.

The visitors had a chance to equalise after Marcus Thuram was brought down by Nicolas Otamendi inside the area and Sanchez sent Trubin the wrong way from the resulting spot-kick to dramatically level things up at three apiece.

Benfica almost regained their lead in the 82nd minute after Di Maria’s curling effort from outside the area looked to be heading into the top corner but Emil Audero palmed behind for a corner.

The home side were then reduced to 10 men a couple of minutes later. Antonio Silva lunged in late on Nicolo Barella and his yellow card was upgraded to a red after a VAR check.

Inter had a chance to snatch it late on but Barella’s first-time effort from inside the box was lashed against the post before Trubin held on to Federico Dimarco’s second shot as both sides took a share of the spoils.

Inter Milan are hoping to have Davide Frattesi available for Saturday’s clash with Bologna.

The Italy international suffered a muscle injury in the defeat at Sassuolo 10 days ago and missed the Serie A clash with Salernitana and the Champions League win over Benfica in midweek.

He trained on Friday and boss Simone Inzaghi will decide whether to risk him for Bologna’s visit to the San Siro.

Marko Arnautovic did not train with the group and will miss out.

Inter sit top of Serie A on goal difference ahead of their rivals AC Milan after a strong start to the season.

Defender Carlos Augusto is loving life at the San Siro following his loan move from Monza.

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The 24-year-old Brazilian has featured nine times for his new team and already knows what is expected.

“It’s going very well,” he said in an interview with DAZN, reported by La Gazzetta Dello Sport.

“The group and the staff have helped me a lot to get used to the new surroundings as best as possible and I’m very happy to help my team-mates. We are a family where everyone helps each other and for this reason, we are doing well.

“Inter aims to always win in all competitions, we want the title, but also the Italian Cup and to get as high as possible in the Champions League, this is what this team is, we want to win everything, always.”

Bologna have only lost once this season – a 2-0 reverse to AC Milan – so they will present a difficult challenge to Inter.

However, they will be without injured trio Stefan Posch, Jhon Lukumi, and Adama Soumaoro.