AC MILAN 3-0 PALERMO

AC Milan opened up an advantage on third-placed Juventus with a comfortable 3-0 win over 10-man Palermo at the San Siro.
A penalty from Kaka and a header from Filippo Inzaghi ensured Milan were already firmly in control before Cesare Bovo received his marching orders three minutes into the second half.
Kaka, who seemed back to his best after an injury-plagued few months, slotted home another penalty eight minutes later to seal the victory.
It was sweet revenge for Milan who were humiliated 3-1 at Palermo earlier in the year, and it leaves them two points above Juve who drew 2-2 at Reggina today.
Palermo barely had a sight of goal and remain three points behind sixth-place Roma who occupy the last Europa League berth.
Milan might have deserved the three points but Palermo will feel aggrieved at their 10th-minute opener as it seemed a harsh decision to award a penalty when Mattia Cassani caught Luca Ambrosini as he leapt up in an attempt to reach David Beckham's long ball.
Kaka stepped up to lash home a good penalty which squeezed in between Marco Amelia and his left post, leaving the Palermo goalkeeper no chance.
The hosts doubled their lead 10 minutes later when Kaka produced a great flick over the Palermo defence to Ambrosini who crossed in for Inzaghi to head home his 150th Serie A goal.
Palermo's best chance of the half came in the 32nd minute when a powerful Fabrizio Miccoli free-kick flew just wide from 35 yards.
The visitors also went close six minutes later but Milan goalkeeper Dida was well placed to save Giulio Migliaccio's close-range header.
A swift counter-attack was almost finished by Inzaghi who would have gone clear on goal but for a good tackle by Bovo.

However, the Palermo defender swiftly went from hero to villain after a rash tackle on Kaka earned him a second yellow card.
That did not bode well for the visitors with Milan boasting the best attacking record of the season so far and Palermo were forced to play even more defensively. Indeed, they had only three shots on goal - and all off target - for the rest of the match.
Things went from bad to worse for the visitors in the 56th minute when Milan were awarded a second penalty when Federico Balzaretti held back Kaka in the area.
The Milan playmaker stepped up to the spot once again and fired a powerful shot straight down the middle.
The Rossoneri came close to increasing the scoreline on several occasions with the most notable being a lovely shot from Andrea Pirlo which flew just wide and an impressive effort from Ronaldinho which substitute goalkeeper Samir Ujkani did well to save.
Milan almost capped a good day with a spectacular goal four minutes from time when a clever one-two between Kaka and Ronaldinho resulted in the latter flicking the ball into the area to Gianluca Zambrotta who dribbled past three defenders before unleashing a shot but Ujkani pulled off another good save.


CEASARE MALDINI: "MILAN ARE MONITORING PALERMO'S YOUTH SIMON KJAER"


Palermo pay visit to AC Milan this afternoon and the Stadio San Siro crowd will have a chance to take a closer look at central defender Simon Kjaer, who has often been associated with a move to the Lombardy giants in recent weeks.
The 20-year-old has made quite an impact since arriving in Italy last summer and several top European sides are said to be keeping tabs on him.
Milan are also rumoured to be in the frame and Rossoneri scout and former Italy boss Cesare Maldini believes Kjaer has what it takes to cut the mustard at the highest level.
“He is an excellent defender,” Maldini enthused in an interview with Il Giornale di Sicilia.
“He is very strong and Milan are closely following him, just like they are following other players. Kjaer is dynamic, fast and elegant, but is also very aggressive and precise.
“He is a classic centre-back and I advise Palermo to keep hold of him for a long time.”