AC Milan beat Catania 2-0 on Saturday despite having Dutch midfielder Mark van Bommel sent off in his first league match since signing from Bayern Munich. Van Bommel received a second yellow card 10 minutes into the second half when he clattered into Catania midfielder Pablo Ledesma.
Despite being a man down, Robinho put the league leader in front in the 58th minute and Zlatan Ibrahimovic added a second five minutes from the final whistle. Also, Lazio won 2-0 at home to Fiorentina after two goals from Libor Kozak. ''It is difficult to play when you're a man down and it is 10 versus 11,'' Robinho said. ''But our response showed the spirit that this team has.'' Milan had a chance in the first minute, but Robinho's low shot was saved by goalkeeper Mariano Andujar. The 'keeper stopped Milan again just before the break when he smothered the ball as Antonio Cassano prepared to shoot. Following Van Bommel's dismissal, Robinho put Milan into the lead when he was first to the ball with Andujar unable to hold Ibrahimovic's free kick.
The Swede nearly doubled the lead when he went past Francesco Sciacca, but shot straight at Andujar. Eventually, Ibrahimovic scored when he diverted Robinho's low cross into the net. ''I was pleased with how we kept our shape in the second half, especially after the sending off,'' Milan coach Massimo Allegri said. ''We knew Catania would aim for Maxi Lopez and we were able to stop that attacking route.'' Lazio started strongly and Sergio Floccari forced Fiorentina goalkeeper Artur Boruc into a desperate save after the striker had linked up with Stefano Mauri and Kozak. Fiorentina came close when Alessio Cerci shot from long range, but Fernando Muslera acrobatically pushed the shot away in the 37th. The Rome side took the lead when Kozak was brought down by Per Kroldrup, and the Czech striker got up and fired the resulting penlty past Boruc. Kozak made it 2-0 four minutes later when he headed home Giuseppe Sculli's cross. ''I'm not a lucky charm, but when the coach asks me to do something, I will do it to the best of my ability,'' Kozak said. ''The coach wanted us to improve and everybody gave their all.''
Results in the Serie A (home teams listed first): Saturday, Jan. 29Lazio 2, Fiorentina 0 Catania 0, AC Milan 2 Sunday, Jan. 30Brescia vs. Chievo Verona Bologna vs. AS Roma Cagliari vs. Bari Genoa vs. Parma Inter Milan vs. Palermo Lecce vs. Cesena Napoli vs. Sampdoria Juventus vs. Udinese Tuesday, Feb. 1AC Milan vs. Lazio Wednesday, Feb. 2Cesena vs. Catani Chievo Verona vs. Napoli Fiorentina vs. Genoa Palermo vs. Juventus Parma vs. Lecce AS Roma vs. Brescia Sampdoria vs. Cagliari Udinese vs. Bologna Thursday, Feb. 3Bari vs. Inter Milan