ROME (Reuters) -Inter Milan earned a hard-fought 1-0 victory at AS Roma on Saturday, with an early strike from Ange-Yoan Bonny tightening the race at the top of Serie A.
The result denied Roma the chance to take the outright lead at the top of the table, instead leaving them level on 15 points with Inter and Napoli at the summit.
Earlier in the evening, Napoli had fallen to a 1-0 away defeat to Torino, suffering their second league loss of the season.
It took six minutes for Inter to break the deadlock, with Bonny racing on to an incisive pass from Nicolo Barella and burying his finish past keeper Mile Svilar.
After the break, Roma pushed forward with greater intent, forcing Inter keeper Yann Sommer into a fine save from Paulo Dybala’s free kick.
Just before the hour mark, Roma's Artem Dovbyk headed a corner under pressure just over the bar.
It was an even contest in the final minutes, with both sides creating chances and Inter went closest when Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s strike rattled the woodwork.
"It is wonderful to score goals, we worked as a team today with a great spirit and are happy with these very important three points," Bonny told Sky Sport Italia.
"I am learning every day from my teammates, we all work so hard and play our part."
Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini said that he was proud of his side's performance despite the early goal they conceded.
"It was a situation that undoubtedly decided the match, but aside from that and the result, I remain convinced with the performance that we will do well. We tried everything to get the equaliser against a strong Inter side, some difficulties were inevitable," he said.
"There are some defeats that give you further belief and conviction in your capabilities."
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in GdanskEditing by Toby Davis)
