AC Milan - Bologna 2-0
AC Milan returned to winning ways in style, sweeping Bologna aside 2-0 at the San Siro.
The defending champions appear unbeatable at the moment, avoiding defeat in their last 19 Serie A games - the longest run of any side in Europe’s top five leagues.
The Rossoneri have looked imperious on home soil of late, conceding the first goal in just one of their last 11 league games at the San Siro.
That run would be extended as Milan took the lead early on.
New signing Charles De Ketelaere slotted in Rafael Leao, who produced a smart finish to wrong-foot Lukasz Skorupski and score at the near post.
Stefano Pioli’s men looked in complete control of the contest, despite not dominating possession. Pierre Kalulu spurned a big chance to double the lead, with his close-range effort smothered by Skorupski.
The Polish shot-stopper was becoming ever busier as the interval approached, denying Leao a second in first-half stoppage time.
The reigning champions would double their lead before the hour mark. Bologna gave the ball away in their own third, allowing Leao’s cross to find Olivier Giroud.
The veteran Frenchman produced an incredible finish, volleying beyond Skorupski in remarkable fashion.
After the second goal went in, Milan never looked in strife as they cruised home to temporarily restore their lead at the top of the table.
Bologna’s miserable record travelling to the Rossoneri continued, losing six of their last seven visits. Their away form generally will be concerning Sinisa Mihajlovic, winning just one of their last 12 road trips, losing seven in that run.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Rafael Leao (AC Milan)
Spezia - Sassuolo 2-2
Spezia registered their first Serie A draw at the Stadio Alberto Picco since mid-December after a closely-contested 2-2 draw with Sassuolo.
Looking to bounce back from a 3-0 defeat against Inter Milan in their last league encounter, the hosts should have opened the scoring in the 10th minute, but M'Bala Nzola could only fire over the crossbar from close range.
That woke up Sassuolo to a dramatic extent, and they eventually took a 1-0 lead in the 28th minute after growing into the game, when the flying forehead of Davide Frattesi met Giorgos Kyriakopoulos’ enticing left-wing cross.
Not dispirited, Spezia restored parity within two minutes, when Simone Bastoni sublimely redirected the ball into the top left-hand corner past Andrea Consigli, after the I Neroverdi defence failed to clear their lines.
Tension then soared as the interval approached, when VAR became the epicentre of Sassuolo’s fury after instructing the referee to award a penalty for handball.
After an agonising three-minute consultation between Francesco Cosso and the on-field monitor, Nzola confidently stepped up to roll the hosts into a half-time lead, redeeming himself for his earlier error in front of goal.
Reacting well to what must have been a robust team talk from Alessio Dionisi, Sassuolo were clearly unwilling to lie down just yet.
Finding an extra gear, Andrea Pinamonti stepped up to the plate, levelling the scoreline just five minutes after the interval, following a catastrophic misjudgement in miscommunication on the edge of the area between Spezia goalkeeper Bartlomiej Dragowski and his defence.
In response to conceding, Spezia boss Luca Gotti threw on Atalanta loanee midfielder Viktor Kovalenko in the hopes of finding a catalyst to his flagging attackers.
But amid a lack of clear-cut opportunities in front of goal, the draw always appeared inevitable, despite substitute Albin Ekdal being sent off for two bookable offences nine minutes from time.
A share of the spoils leaves Spezia with only one victory from their opening three encounters, while Sassuolo remain without back-to-back victories since March.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Davide Frattesi (Sassuolo)
