26.07.2020 22:13 h

Lazio, Roma win before Juventus bid to secure title

Juventus will bid to seal a ninth straight Serie A title when they play Sampdoria later Sunday after Lazio and Roma both won their games in the Italian top flight.

Ciro Immobile scored a hat-trick as fourth-placed Lazio thrashed Hellas Verona 5-1 to keep their slim title hopes alive, with Roma, in fifth, seeing off Fiorentina 2-1 at the Stadio Olimpico.

Serie A leading scorer Immobile pulled four goals clear of Juventus' five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo in the goal-scoring charts.

Ronaldo, targeting his first 'Capocannoniere' award for top scorer in Italy, will look to close the gap on Immobile's tally of 34 league goals this season later Sunday.

Juventus have 80 points, four ahead of second-placed Inter Milan, and can seal a 36th title with two games to spare if they beat 15th-placed Sampdoria.

Lazio, already assured of Champions League football next season, pulled level on 75 points with third-placed Atalanta.

A Sofyan Amrabat penalty had put hosts Verona ahead on 39 minutes.

But Simone Inzaghi's side hit back, with Immobile converting a penalty on the stroke of the interval before blasting in seven minutes from time and adding another spot-kick in injury time.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Joaquin Correa were also on the scoresheet.

Roma move four points ahead of sixth-placed AC Milan thanks to two Jordan Veretout penalties against Fiorentina.

Musa Barrow snatched a late winner for midtable Bologna in a 3-2 win which pushed Lecce closer to Serie B next season.

Bologna had gone two goals up within five minutes with Barrow setting up Rodrigo Palacio and Roberto Soriano.

But Lecce battled back as Marco Mancosu got the southerners back into the game before the break, with Filippo Falco equalising on 66 minutes, but Barrow struck late.