Milan, Oct 3 (AP) Fiorentina moved level with third-place Napoli in Serie A with a 3-0 win over bottom club Cagliari.

Nicolás González netted his sixth goal of the season to set Fiorentina on the way to victory on Monday and see it join the defending champion and Juventus. They're four points behind Serie A leaders AC Milan and Inter Milan.

Also Read | India vs Nepal, Asian Games 2023 Live Streaming Online: Watch Live Telecast of IND vs NEP Quarterfinal Cricket Match on TV With Time in IST.

It all got even bleaker for Cagliari and manager Claudio Ranieri even at this early stage of the season. The Sardinian team has just two points from its opening seven matches back in the top flight.

Fiorentina, which has lost just one match, got off to the perfect start as it took the lead with barely two minutes on the clock.

Also Read | Asian Games 2023 Indian Medal Winners List: Check Updated Names of Team India Athletes Who Have Won Medals at 19th Asiad in Hangzhou.

Cagliari goalkeeper Boris Radunovic misjudged Nikola Milenkovic's free kick and could only flap at the ball, allowing González to slot it into an empty net.

Fiorentina was dominating but needed another bit of fortune to double its lead in the 21st minute. Some great play from Michael Kayode saw the Fiorentina right back weave his way into the area and his cross was turned into the back of the net by Cagliari defender Alberto Dossena.

Cagliari improved in the second half and almost got back into the match but Andrea Petagna hit the crossbar, although he was probably offside in any case.

M'Bala Nzola extended Fiorentina's lead in stoppage time when he raced onto a long ball from Rolando Mandragora and dinked it over Radunovic.

PAPU'S BACK

Monza halted a four-match winless run with a 1-0 victory at in-form Sassuolo.

Lorenzo Colombo scored a delightful solo goal in the 66th minute to give Monza its second win of the season. The young forward could have had another late on but it was ruled out for offside.

The match also saw the return of Papu Gómez to Italian soccer. The former Atalanta star joined Monza last week on a free transfer after ending his contract with Sevilla.

Sassuolo had beaten Juventus and Inter Milan in its past two matches.

Monza moved level on points with Sassuolo and Torino.

Torino drew 0-0 at home to Hellas Verona to remain a point above its opponent.

Verona started the season with two victories but hasn't won since and has failed to score in its past four matches. AP

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)