AC Milan beat Napoli to move past Inter

Naples: Robinho and Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored as AC Milan beat 10-man Napoli on Monday to leapfrog Inter Milan and move into second place in Serie A.

With Ronaldinho out with a minor injury, Robinho received a rare start and put Milan in front in the 22nd minute after Massimo Oddo delivered a pass to the wide-open Brazil striker in the center of the area.

Ibrahimovic doubled the lead with a header following another cross from Oddo in the 72nd and Ezequiel Lavezzi pulled one back for Napoli in the 78th on a rainy night at the San Paolo stadium.

Napoli was reduced to 10 men when midfielder Michele Pazienza picked up his second yellow card for a handball near midfield in first-half added time.

Lazio leads Serie A with 19 points, Milan has 17 and Inter has 15. Napoli is tied for fifth with Juventus with 12 points each.

Milan had been under pressure to bounce back after a 2-0 loss to Real Madrid in the Champions League last week.

"The squad played very well technically. Compared to Madrid I think we played a completely different match," Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri. "It's not easy to play against Napoli — they've got some very skilled players who run really hard."

Milan next faces Juventus on Saturday.

After Robinho's goal, Napoli responded with consecutive chances from Edinson Cavani and Marek Hamsik but both attempts missed the target.

Napoli threatened to equalize again in first-half added time but Lavezzi's header was tipped over the bar by Milan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati, who made a similar save on Hamsik in the 60th.

Lavezzi's goal was a display of the Argentina forward's strength, with the striker somehow getting up off the ground to lift the ball over Abbiati.

Near the end of the match, Robinho dropped to the ground after a light touch from Napoli defender Salvatore Aronica, putting his hands to his face even though the contact was closer to his chest, setting off a series of protests from Napoli, with players from both squads coming off their benches to intervene.

Milan fullback Luca Antonini was carried off following a collision with Napoli's Christian Maggio early in the first half. Antonini had a brace applied to his neck and was replaced by Massimo Oddo, and Maggio eventually came off, too.