Juventus open up three-point lead over Milan

Rome: Undefeated Juventus routed 10-man Roma 4-0 on Sunday to open up a three-point lead over AC Milan with just five rounds remaining in Serie A. Ten-man Milan needed a 90th-minute equalizer from Zlatan Ibrahimovic to salvage a 1-1 draw at home with Bologna.

Meanwhile, the Italian game was once again marred by crowd trouble at Genoa, where supporters caused a 45-minute suspension in their club's 4-1 loss to Siena — during which the players stripped off their shirts in a sign of apology.

Playing in the late match and already aware of Milan's draw, Juventus took control immediately, with two early goals from Arturo Vidal in the fourth and eighth minutes. Roma goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg was then sent off for a last-man foul on Claudio Marchisio in the 26th. Andrea Pirlo converted his own rebound from the ensuing penalty to make it 3-0, and Marchisio added the fourth in the 52nd minute.

"Our approach was fundamental. We approached this match like a great squad," Juve manager Antonio Conte said. "This is another step forward, but we know that there are five matches remaining and they're five finals. ... But we control our own destiny now."

Juventus also clinched at least a top-two finish, meaning they have qualified directly for the Champions League — after finishing seventh the past two seasons.

"The club asked me to reach this goal and now it's been realized, but we're not aiming for minimum goals at this point," Conte said.

At the San Siro, Uruguayan forward Gaston Ramirez gave Bologna the lead in the 26th, finishing off a swift counter-attack after Milan midfielder Mark van Bommel lost possession.

Milan defender Daniele Bonera picked up his second yellow card in the 82nd and it looked like the Rossoneri were about to slip to their second loss in three matches until Ibrahimovic scored with a close-range volley.

Elsewhere, third-placed Lazio allowed a late equalizer in a 1-1 draw with Lecce. After both sides had hit the crossbar, Brazilian midfielder Francelino Matuzalem scored with a header for Lazio in the 82nd, but Valeri Bojinov drew Lecce level in added time from the center of the area for his first goal since rejoining the southern club on loan from Sporting Lisbon in January.

Lazio held on to the final Champions League spot, but are only three points ahead of Udinese, with Napoli four points back.

Meanwhile, the match in Genoa was interrupted early in the second half when fans threw flares onto the pitch and climbed atop barriers as they were faced by stewards in riot gear. After the fans calmed down, the match resumed and Cristiano Del Grosso scored an own goal for Genoa in the 79th. The loss left Genoa one point above the relegation zone.

An Italy-Serbia match in the same stadium last season was stopped in similar circumstances — albeit with Serbian fans causing the violence. There were also massive clashes following the shooting of a Lazio fan by a police officer at a highway rest-stop in 2007. And the hard-core 'ultra' fans forced the 2004 Rome derby to be suspended after a false rumour spread that a boy had been shot by police outside the stadium.

Earlier, Julio Cesar saved a penalty but Inter Milan came away with only a 0-0 draw at struggling Fiorentina, damaging their dwindling chances of qualifying for the Champions League. In the 69th minute, Julio Cesar dove to his right to push away a low spot-kick from Adem Ljajic after the goalkeeper had tripped Andrea Lazzari.

Also, Palermo drew 2-2 at Cesena.

A minute of silence was held before each match a week after Piermario Morosini's death from cardiac arrest in a Serie B game last week.