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European football roundup: Inter Milan, Roma play out stalemate

Inter were left with just a two-point lead over Juventus after their goalless draw against Roma

Romelu Lukaku and Serie A leading Inter Milan were held to a goalless draw by Chris Smalling's Roma on Friday, allowing Juventus a chance to retake top spot this weekend.

The build-up to the San Siro showdown was overshadowed by a controversial front page on Italian daily Corriere dello Sport on Thursday.

The newspaper was accused of fuelling racism after running the headline 'Black Friday' alongside pictures of Inter's Lukaku and Roma's Smalling.

The cover attracted widespread criticism, with on-loan Roma defender Smalling describing it as "wrong and highly insensitive" while his former Manchester United team-mate Lukaku called it the "dumbest of headlines".

The pair both started Friday's encounter, where Lukaku came close to netting early on with a shot that Roma goalkeeper Antonio Mirante parried away.

Neither side could find the breakthrough though as Inter saw their five-match winning streak in Serie A come to an end. They are now two points clear of reigning champions Juve, while Roma climbed up to fourth.

In LaLiga, Villarreal held Atletico Madrid to a goalless draw at the Estadio de la Ceramica.

Joao Felix had the best of Atletico's chances as they recorded their eighth draw of the league season, with only 16 matches gone.

Diego Simeone's side are now five points behind joint leaders Barcelona and Real Madrid, with both yet to play this weekend.

In the Bundesliga, Eintracht Frankfurt came from two goals behind to force a 2-2 draw with Hertha Berlin.

Goals from Dodi Lukebakio and Marko Grujic had seemingly put Hertha on course for their first win since October 4.

Frankfurt fought back, however, with Martin Hinteregger's strike reducing the deficit before Sebastian Rode struck the equaliser in the 86th minute.

In Ligue 1, Lyon stormed to a 4-0 win over Nimes, who had to play for more than 50 minutes with nine men.

Theo Valls was sent off in the fifth minute to leave Nimes struggling, and matters got worse for the home side when Memphis Depay converted from the spot in the 16th minute.

Nimes managed to contain Lyon for the rest of the first half, but Gaetan Paquiez was sent off in the 40th minute and the visitors took full advantage after the break with further goals from Depay, Houssem Aouar and Joachim Andersen.

In Friday's other Ligue 1 match, a Victor Osimhen goal gave Lille all three points in a 1-0 win over Brest.

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Inter Milan's Romelu Lukaku reacts during the match against Borussia Dortmund on November 5, 2019
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Chris Smalling, Romelu Lukaku hit out at 'Black Friday' newspaper headline
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Atalanta BCAtalanta16121339172237
2Napoli15102321101132
3Inter Milan1494134151931
4Fiorentina1494128101831
5Lazio15101430171331
6Juventus1569024101427
7AC Milan146442416822
8Bologna145722018222
9Udinese156271822-420
10Empoli164751416-219
11Torino165471720-319
12Roma154471821-316
13Parma153662125-415
14Genoa153661324-1115
15CagliariCagliari163581526-1114
16Lecce15348826-1813
17Como152671628-1212
18Hellas VeronaHellas Verona1540111837-1912
19Monza151771319-610
20VeneziaVenezia1523101327-149


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