Italy round-up: Juventus seal title triumph

Juventus FC claimed their 27th Serie A title despite being held to a 2-2 draw at home by AC Perugia.

Unassailable lead
A win would have guaranteed the Turin club the championship with two matches still left to play, but in the event nearest challengers Internazionale FC were also held, drawing 1-1 at home to Parma AC, to give Marcello Lippi's side an unassailable eight-point lead at the top of the table.

Penalty opener
With Wednesday's UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg against Real Madrid CF in mind, the Juventus coach began with a weakened side, leaving both Alessandro Del Piero and Czech Republic playmaker Pavel Nedved on the substitutes' bench. Their absence seemed to matter little, however, as France international striker David Trezeguet gave Juventus the lead against Perugia with a 25th-minute penalty after Marco Di Vaio had been fouled.

Solo strike
The away side quickly recovered, and Fabrizio Miccoli equalised nine minutes before half-time, converting Zé Maria's cross. Di Vaio restored Juventus's advantage a minute into the second half with a spectacular solo strike, but it seemed that any championship celebrations would have to be put on hold for at least another week as Fabio Grosso equalised again a minute into added time until news filtered through of Inter's draw.

Demoralising equaliser
Mohamed Kallon had given Inter the lead against Parma, as the Sierra Leone forward collected Cristiano Zanetti's pass and prodded the ball past Parma goalkeeper Sébastien Frey, but Adrian Mutu's strike three minutes past the hour, the Romanian forward finishing after good work from Adriano, ended the title hopes of Héctor Cúper's side for another season.

Milan beaten
AC Milan, meanwhile, also fielded an under-strength side ahead of Tuesday's Champions League semi-final against local rivals Inter, and slipped a 1-0 defeat at Brescia Calcio, with Ghanaian midfield player Stephen Appiah scoring the only goal of the game six minutes from time.

Lazio closing in
Fourth-placed S.S. Lazio moved to within a point of Milan with a 2-0 win at Bologna FC. Simone Inzaghi opened the scoring a minute before half-time from the penalty spot, before defender Giuseppe Favalli made the game safe, adding a second a minute before the hour.

Chievo keep hopes alive
AC Chievo Verona maintained their challenge for a place in next season's Champions League with a 4-2 win at relegated Como Calcio. Two goals from Dario Franceschini and one each from Luciano and Sasa Bjelanovic put the away side in complete command, with Nicola Amoruso and Nicola Caccia scoring second-half consolation goals for Como.

Strugglers draw
At the bottom of the table, two Dario Hubner goals were not enough for third-bottom Piacenza FC, who drew 2-2 at home to fellow strugglers Reggina Calcio and remained five points and one place behind their opponents. Atalanta stayed level with Reggina on 32 points after being held to a 0-0 draw at Empoli FC.

Two for Cassano
Elsewhere, Antonio Cassano scored twice as AS Roma defeated demoted Torino Calcio 3-1, while Udinese Calcio were 2-1 winners against Modena FC.