Inter and Milan draw ahead of potential title-deciding derby for the Nerazzurri. Ndicka collapses

MILAN (AP) — Inter Milan will need to win the derby against AC Milan in the next round to secure the Serie A title with five games to spare after both teams drew their games on Sunday.

Milan fought back from 3-1 down but could only draw 3-3 at relegation-threatened Sassuolo in an early match on Sunday. That meant that if Inter had beaten struggling Cagliari at home, a draw would have then sufficed at Milan on April 22 to win a 20th league title and earn a second star on the team shirts.

However, Inter was held to a 2-2 draw by Cagliari.

A star is awarded for every 10 Serie A titles. Milan, like Inter, has won the Italian league 19 times.

Roma's match at Udinese was suspended with about 19 minutes remaining after defender Evan Ndicka collapsed.

At Sassuolo, Milan got off to the worst possible start as it found itself 2-0 down inside 10 minutes following goals from Andrea Pinamonti and Armand Laurienté.

Samuel Chukwueze thought he had pulled one back for Milan in the 17th minute but it was ruled out for a tight offside decision as a portion of his shoulder was caught out.

Milan did get back into the match three minutes later in stunning fashion. Rafael Leão cut inside the left of the area and beat two defenders before firing between the legs of another and into the far bottom corner.

Laurienté doubled his tally and restored Sassuolo’s two-goal lead early in the second half when he was left unmarked and had the time and space to control a cross and drive it past stand-in Milan goalkeeper Marco Sportiello.

Luka Jović reduced the deficit in the 59th and Chukwueze thought he had equalized four minutes later but it was again ruled out for offside.

Milan did level six minutes from time. A corner was nodded on by Olivier Giroud and the ball was then chested towards Noah Okafor, who slotted home from point-blank range with one of his first touches after coming on as a substitute.

Sassuolo, which is second-to-last in the standings, inched to within a point of safety.

SUSPENDED LAUTARO

Inter was without the suspended Lautaro Martínez but nevertheless seemed on course for an important win before Nicolas Viola’s late equalizer for Cagliari, shortly after coming off the bench.

Cagliari forward Eldor Shomurodov had canceled out Marcus Thuram’s opener for Inter but Hakan Çalhanoğlu restored the Nerazzurri’s lead from the spot in the 74th after handball by visiting defender Yerry Mina.

SPALLETTI’S RETURN

Walid Cheddira scored two goals against his parent club to help relegation-threatened Frosinone draw 2-2 against Napoli.

Napoli twice took the lead through Matteo Politano and Victor Osimhen but Cheddira hauled Napoli level on both occasions.

Cheddira was signed by Napoli in August but immediately sent on loan to Frosinone.

The 26-year-old Morocco forward also won a penalty in the first half but Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret saved Matías Soulé’s tame effort.

Napoli defender Mário Rui was sent off for a second yellow card in stoppage time.

Italy coach Luciano Spalletti, who led Napoli to its first league title in more than three decades last season, was watching from the stands and he appeared to be fighting back tears as the home fans chanted his name after he was shown on the stadium’s giant screens.

Napoli is on its third coach since Spalletti left at the end of last season and is eighth in Serie A.

Frosinone moved level with 17th-place Hellas Verona.

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Inter Milan's Marcus Thuram, centre, celebrates after scoring his side's opening goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Cagliari at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Hakan Calhanoglu celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Cagliari at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Roma's Evan Ndicka is carried off the pitch during the Serie A soccer match between Udinese and Roma at the Bluenergy Stadium in Udine, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. Roma defender Evan Ndicka has collapsed toward the end of his team’s Serie A match at Udinese with the game then called off. The score was 1-1 when Ndicka fell to the ground in the 71st minute while the action was at the other end of the field and started pointing at his chest. (Andrea Bressanutti/LaPresse via AP)

Roma's Evan Ndicka is carried off the pitch on a stretcher during the Serie A soccer match between Udinese and Roma at the Bluenergy Stadium in Udine, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (Andrea Bressanutti/LaPresse via AP)

Inter Milan's head coach Simone Inzaghi yells during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Cagliari at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Napoli's Matteo Politano, center, celebrates with teammates after scoring the opening goal during a Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, Italy, Sunday, April 14 , 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Napoli's Victor Osimhen, right, looks at his shot go into goal as his teammate Leo Skiri Østigård celebrates during a Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Frosinone's Walid Cheddira celebrates after scoring the equalizing goal during a Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Frosinone's Walid Cheddira, center, celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during a Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Frosinone at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, Italy, Sunday, April 14, 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Milan's Luka Jovic celebrates after scoring their side's second goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Milan at Mapei Stadium in Sassuolo, Italy, Sunday April 14, 2024 (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse)

Sassuolo's Armand Lauriente scores their side's third goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Milan at Mapei Stadium in Sassuolo, Italy, Sunday April 14, 2024 (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse)

Sassuolo's Andrea Pinamonti celebrates after scoring their side's first goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Milan at Mapei Stadium in Sassuolo, Italy, Sunday April 14, 2024 (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse)

Sassuolo's Armand Lauriente scores their side's second goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Milan at Mapei Stadium in Sassuolo, Italy, Sunday April 14, 2024 (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse)

Milan's Rafael Leao, second left, scores their side's first goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Milan at Mapei Stadium in Sassuolo, Italy, Sunday April 14, 2024 (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse)

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Police arrested about 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam early Tuesday, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread into Europe.

Police in the Dutch capital said in a statement on the social media platform X that their action was “necessary to restore order” after protests turned violent. There were no immediate reports of injuries.

Video from the scene aired by national broadcaster NOS showed police using a mechanical digger to push down barricades and officers wielding batons and shields moving in to end the demonstration, beating some of the protesters and pulling down tents.

Protesters formed barricades from wooden pallets and bicycles, NOS reported.

Scores of demonstrators occupied a small island at the university on Monday, urging Amsterdam universities to break academic ties with Israel because of its offensive in Gaza in the aftermath of the deadly Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas militants in southern Israel.

There have also been demonstrations in recent days at campuses in France and the United Kingdom.

Photos from the Amsterdam campus Tuesday morning showed tents, banners and food along with piles of cobblestones that had been pulled up from the street.

Before police moved in, scuffles broke out Monday night between two rival groups of activists.

Police said in a statement that they cleared the makeshift camp after the protesters refused repeated orders to leave.

“The protest in this form created a very unsafe situation, partly due to the barricades that prevented emergency services from entering the site. In the event of a disaster, the activists themselves could possibly become stuck on the site,” police said.

They said the campus was calm Tuesday morning, but that officers remained present in the area.

Calls to the university went unanswered early Tuesday and the university did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

In Finland, dozens of protesters from the Students for Palestine solidarity group set up an encampment outside the main building at the University of Helsinki. Demonstrators said they would stay at the site in central Helsinki until the university, which is Finland’s largest academic institution, cuts academic ties with Israeli universities.

In Denmark, students set up a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Copenhagen. About 45 tents were erected on the lawn outside the campus of the Faculty of Social Sciences, known as CSS. The faculty sits in an old municipal hospital in the heart of the Danish capital.

The university's administration said students can protest on campus but called on them to respect the rules on its grounds. "Seek dialogue, not conflict and make room for perspectives other than your own,” the administrators said in a statement posted on X.

It said the administration "cannot and must not express an opinion on behalf of university employees and students about political matters, including about the ongoing conflict” in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

On their Facebook page, members of the activist group Students Against the Occupation said their attempts to talk to the administration over the past two years about withdrawing the school's investments in companies with ties to activities in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories have been in vain.

"We can no longer be satisfied with cautious dialogue that does not lead to concrete action,” the group said.

In Paris, student groups called for gatherings in solidarity with Palestinians later Tuesday.

On Friday, French police peacefully removed dozens of students from a building at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, known as Sciences Po, after they had gathered in support of Palestinians.

On Tuesday, students at the prestigious institution, which counts French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and President Emmanuel Macron among its alumni, were seen entering the campus unobstructed to take exams as police stood at the entrances.

Protests took place last week at some other universities across the country, including in Lille and Lyon. The Prime Minister’s Office said police had been requested to remove students from 23 sites on French campuses.

Associated Press writer Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed to this report.

In this image taken from video Police arrests some 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2024, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread into Europe. (AP Photo InterVision)

In this image taken from video Police arrests some 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2024, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread into Europe. (AP Photo InterVision)

In this image taken from video Police arrests some 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Tuesday, May 7, 2024, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread into Europe. (AP Photo InterVision)