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Inter’s Serie A lead is down to 6 points after 1-1 draw at Fiorentina

ROME (AP) — Inter Milan is limping into the international break on a four-match winless streak across all competitions that has seen its Serie A lead reduced to six points.

Cher Ndour knocked in a rebound late in the second half for relegation-threatened Fiorentina in a 1-1 draw with visiting Inter on Sunday.

Pio Esposito had put Inter ahead with a header less than a minute in.

Inter was left six points ahead of second-place AC Milan, which beat Inter in a derby two weeks ago and defeated Torino on Saturday; and seven points ahead of defending champion Napoli, which won at Cagliari on Friday for its fourth straight victory.

Eight rounds remain in the Italian league.

Fiorentina moved two points above the drop zone.

Como controls Champions League spot

Como took control of the final Champions League spot by thrashing relegation-threatened Pisa 5-0 for its fifth straight victory.

The victory boosted Cesc Fabregas’ club three points clear of fifth-place Juventus, which was held to a 1-1 draw by Sassuolo on Saturday.

Assane Diao, Anastasios Douvikas, Martin Baturina, Nico Paz and Maximo Perrone scored for the hosts.

Douvikas’ 11th goal of the season made him the first Como player with that many in the top flight since Giuseppe Baldini scored 13 and Renato Cattaneo 11 in 1951-52.

Como’s win came three days after one of Como’s owners, Indonesian tobacco billionaire Michael Bambang Hartono, died at 86.

Hartono and his brother, Roberto Budi Hartono, took over Como in 2019 when the team was playing in Italy’s fourth division.

Como returned to Serie A in 2024 for the first time in more than two decades.

Sixth-place Roma beat visiting Lecce 1-0 to move level on points with Juventus and snap a five-match winless streak that included an elimination defeat to Bologna in the Europa League on Thursday.

Robinio Vaz came off the bench to head in his first Serie A goal for Roma early in the second half after transferring from Marseille in January.

Taylor’s brace

Lazio’s January signing Kenneth Taylor scored two second-half goals in a 2-0 win at Bologna that enabled the Roman club to leapfrog the hosts into eighth place.

A Netherlands international, the 23-year-old Taylor was purchased by Maurizio Sarri’s club from Ajax for 17 million euros ($20 million).

Lazio goalkeeper Edoardo Motta — playing in just his third Serie A match — saved a penalty from Riccardo Orsolini in the 51st with the score 0-0.

It was Lazio’s third straight win.

Also, seventh-place Atalanta bounced back from a Champions League loss to Bayern Munich with a 1-0 victory over Hellas Verona as Davide Zappacosta scored before the break.

Midfielder Marten de Roon was celebrated before kickoff as he made a club-record 436th appearance for Atalanta across all competitions.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

NYPD says dozens rescued from human trafficking during World Cup

▶ Watch Video: Inside look at security preparations for World Cup Forty-three people, including seven minors, were rescued from human traffickers during the World Cup matches in the New York City area, according to the New York City Police Department's Special Victims Unit.The rescue operations were carried out between June 11 and July 19 by specialized NYPD detectives who arrested 89 individuals."The surprise was really the outpouring of support behind the mission and the collaboration with all our partners," said Inspector Gary Marcus, commanding officer of the Special Victims Unit.Those rescued, largely the victims of sex trafficking, are now being supported with an array of social services for the victims, including food, housing and counseling.The 87 operations carried out during the World Cup have generated new leads, officials said, and law enforcement agencies are building more cases based on the investigations already underway."We have ongoing investigations now as a result of these operations," an NYPD official told CBS News.Major sporting events are known to law enforcement as hotbeds of human trafficking.Years in advance, the NYPD devoted significant resources to preparing for the World Cup. Eight matches were played at New Jersey's MetLife Stadium, including the final on Sunday."When we talk about the outreach and the prep we do, a large part of that involved visiting the known sex offenders, particularly the known human traffickers, in our registry," Marcus said. "Whether they're on parole or probation for human trafficking, we visited them to make sure they're compliant with the terms of their release, and secondly, to let them know that the NYPD is watching."The matches were held in multiple cities around the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Preparations to secure those games and prepare for crimes like human trafficking were coordinated between local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.Police departments in many locations that hosted World Cup matches have made arrests and rescues connected to human trafficking, including in Georgia, New England and Missouri. Nationally, there were more than 673 arrests on human-trafficking charges made during the World Cup, and 61 adults and 13 minors rescued, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
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