Serie A leader Napoli beats Lecce amid flares and delays to move closer to title

MILAN (AP) — Napoli didn’t let flares and delays affect its performance as Antonio Conte’s side ground out a 1-0 win at Lecce to take firm control of Serie A on Saturday.

Giacomo Raspadori scored the only goal to keep Napoli three points ahead of second-placed Inter Milan, which beat Hellas Verona 1-0.

Napoli needs only seven points from the remaining three rounds to win its second league title in three years.

“It’s an important step, I can’t lie,” Conte said. “We’re on track and we want to stay there until the end.

“Nobody will remember if we finish second or if we had a good season. History must be written and you do it by winning: The others read it.”

There was a tense atmosphere in Lecce and plenty of banners and chants insulting the league’s governing body as fans were furious Lecce was forced to play against Atalanta just three days after the death of club physical therapist Graziano Fiorita.

There was a moving minute’s silence before the match but the tension boiled over after kickoff when fans threw flares and fireworks onto the field, causing the match to be temporarily halted in the sixth minute.

Play was going to continue after about four minutes but there was another delay to repair the bottom of the net, where a firework burned a hole.

Napoli thought it got off to the perfect start when Romelu Lukaku had the ball in the back of the net after 100 seconds but it was ruled out for offside.

The visitors did take the lead in the 24th after Raspadori was bundled over right on the edge of the area and he dusted himself down to curl a free kick into the bottom right corner.

Lecce reacted well and Kialonda Gaspar headed a corner onto the crossbar but, despite laying siege to the goal, it couldn’t find the equalizer and remained just a point above the relegation zone.

Despite the importance of the match against Verona, Inter made wholesale changes ahead of the second leg of the Champions League semifinal against Barcelona on Tuesday.

Captain Lautaro Martínez was injured and was one of 10 changes to the starting lineup from last week’s thrilling 3-3 draw at Barcelona. Defender Yann Bisseck was the only player retained.

Inter nevertheless got off to a quickfire start when Kristjan Asllani drilled a penalty into the bottom right corner in the ninth minute after Verona defender Nicolás Valentini handled the ball.

Inter’s first win in six matches followed a dismal run that shattered its dreams of a treble as it was beaten by AC Milan in the Italian Cup semifinals and lost two Serie A matches on the bounce.

Verona was six points above the relegation zone.

Parma had to postpone its celebrations of securing Serie A safety after losing at home to Como 1-0.

Gabriel Strefezza scored in the 79th and some truly awful misses left Parma six points above the drop zone.

Cagliari was only a point above Parma and also still not safe after losing to Udinese 2-1.

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

Inter Milan players celebrate after Inter Milan's Kristjan Asllani scored his side's opening goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Hellas Verona at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Kristjan Asllani scores on a penalty kick during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Hellas Verona at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Kristjan Asllani, right, celebrates with teammates after scoring his side's opening goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Hellas Verona at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez, center top, watches from the tribune during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Hellas Verona at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Lecce's Nikola Krstovic kicks the ball during the Italian Serie A soccer match between US Lecce and SSC Napoli, at the Via del Mare Stadium, in Lecce, Italy, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (Giovanni Evangelista/LaPresse via AP)

Napoli's Giacomo Raspadori celebrates scoring during the Italian Serie A soccer match between US Lecce and SSC Napoli, at the Via del Mare Stadium, in Lecce, Italy, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (Giovanni Evangelista/LaPresse via AP)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Ahn Sung-ki, one of South Korean cinema’s biggest stars whose prolific 60-year career and positive, gentle public image earned him the nickname “The Nation’s Actor,” died Monday. He was 74.

Ahn, who had suffered blood cancer for years, was pronounced dead at Seoul's Soonchunhyang University Hospital, his agency, the Artist Company, and hospital officials said.

“We feel deep sorrow at the sudden, sad news, pray for the eternal rest of the deceased and offer our heartfelt condolences to his bereaved family members," the Artist Company said in a statement.

President Lee Jae Myung issued a condolence message saying Ahn provided many people with comfort, joy and time for reflection. “I already miss his warm smile and gentle voice,” Lee wrote on Facebook.

Born to a filmmaker in the southeastern city of Daegu in 1952, Ahn made his debut as a child actor in the movie “The Twilight Train” in 1957. He subsequently appeared in about 70 movies as a child actor before he left the film industry to live an ordinary life.

In 1970, Ahn entered Seoul’s Hankuk University of Foreign Studies as a Vietnamese major. Ahn said he graduated with top honors but failed to land jobs at big companies, who likely saw his Vietnamese major largely useless after a communist victory in the Vietnam War in 1975.

Ahn returned to the film industry in 1977 believing he could still excel in acting. In 1980, he rose to fame for his lead role in Lee Jang-ho’s “Good, Windy Days,” a hit coming-of-age movie about the struggle of working-class men from rural areas during the country’s rapid rise. Ahn won the best new actor award in the prestigious Grand Bell Awards, the Korean version of the Academy Awards.

He later starred in a series of highly successful and critically acclaimed movies, sweeping best actor awards and becoming arguably the country’s most popular actor in much of the 1980-90s.

Some of his memorable roles included a Buddhist monk in 1981’s “Mandara,” a beggar in 1984’s “Whale Hunting,” a Vietnam War veteran-turned-novelist in 1992’s “White Badge,” a corrupt police officer in 1993’s “Two Cops,” a murderer in 1999’s “No Where To Hide,” a special forces trainer in 2003’s “Silmido” and a devoted celebrity manager in 2006’s “Radio Star.”

Ahn had collected dozens of trophies in major movie awards in South Korea, including winning the Grand Bell Awards for best actor five times, an achievement no other South Korean actors have matched yet.

Ahn built up an image as a humble, trustworthy and family-oriented celebrity who avoided major scandals and maintained a quiet, stable personal life. Past public surveys chose Ahn as South Korea’s most beloved actor and deserving of the nickname “The Nation’s Actor.”

Ahn said he earlier felt confined with his “The Nation's Actor” labeling but eventually thought that led him down the right path. In recent years, local media has given other stars similar honorable nicknames, but Ahn was apparently the first South Korean actor who was dubbed “The Nation's Actor.”

“I felt I should do something that could match that title. But I think that has eventually guided me on a good direction,” Ahn said in an interview with Yonhap news agency in 2023.

In media interviews, Ahn couldn’t choose what his favorite movie was, but said that his role as a dedicated, hardworking manger for a washed-up rock singer played by Park Jung-hoon resembled himself in real life the most.

Ahn was also known for his reluctance to do love scenes. He said said he was too shy to act romantic scenes and sometimes asked directors to skip steamy scenes if they were only meant to add spice to movies.

“I don’t do well on acting like looking at someone who I don’t love with loving eyes and kissing really romantically. I feel shy and can’t express such emotions well,” Ahn said in an interview with the Shindonga magazine in 2007. “Simply, I’m clumsy on that. So I couldn’t star in such movies a lot. But ultimately, that was a right choice for me.”

Ahn is survived by his wife and their two sons. A mourning station at a Seoul hospital was to run until Friday.

FILE - South Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki smiles for a photo on the red carpet at the 56th Daejong Film Awards ceremony in Seoul, South Korea, June 3, 2020. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)

FILE - South Korean actor Ahn Sung-ki attends an event as part of the 11th Pusan International Film Festival in Busan, South Korea, Oct. 13, 2006. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)