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Lautaro Martinez’s brace helps Inter rout Roma 5-2 to get Serie A title pursuit back on track

MILAN (AP) — Lautaro Martinez is back from injury, and Inter Milan is back looking like the Serie A leader again.

Lautaro scored twice in his first action since February and Inter routed visiting Roma 5-2 on Sunday to end a four-match winless streak across all competitions.

Lautaro scored in the second and 52nd minutes at the San Siro. Hakan Calhanoglu — fresh off helping Turkey qualify for the World Cup — Marcus Thuram and Nicolò Barella also found the net for Inter.

Gianluca Mancini, along with Barella a member of the Italy team that failed to qualify for the World Cup, scored a momentary equalizer for Roma. Then Lorenzo Pellegrini pulled one back for Roma after the Giallorossi had gone four goals behind.

Inter, which had its advantage sliced from 10 to six points before the international break, moved nine points ahead of city rival AC Milan and 10 ahead of defending champion Napoli, which hosts Milan on Monday.

Bologna prepares for Aston Villa

Earlier, Bologna won 2-1 at relegation-threatened Cremonese to move up to eighth before hosting Aston Villa in the Europa League quarterfinals on Thursday.

Joao Mario and Jonathan Rowe scored early for Bologna before Federico Bonazzoli pulled one back late for Cremonese by converting a penalty. Youssef Maleh of Cremonese and Lewis Ferguson of Bologna were each sent off in stoppage time.

Cremonese was without former Leicester striker Jamie Vardy, who sat out due to a muscle injury.

Also, Torino won 1-0 at last-place Pisa with an 80th-minute goal from Che Adams.

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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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