Roma holds Napoli to dramatic draw and Dortmund beats Frankfurt ahead of Bayern clash

Roma fought back from two goals down to draw at Napoli 3-3 in a chaotic finale and keep the pressure on the top two in Serie A on Saturday.

Borussia Dortmund beat Eintracht Frankfurt 1-0 to summit the Bundesliga ahead of the showdown at Bayern Munich next weekend.

Premier League leader Manchester City fell at Aston Villa 2-1, while Arsenal beat Everton 2-0.

Napoli appeared to be coasting to victory against Roma after a stunning overhead kick from Frank Anguissa and a Scott McTominay header.

But Matías Soulé and Leonardo Balerdi hauled Roma level. Napoli went ahead again in the 83rd minute thanks to a second from McTominay — who also scored twice in Tuesday's 4-3 win over Bodø/Glimt in the Champions League.

However, Balerdi headed in the equalizer six minutes later. Moments later, Napoli coach Massimiliano Allegri was sent off for dissent and he flung his jacket as he stormed off.

Roma moved to within a point of Serie A leaders Inter Milan and Lazio. Lazio played Parma later, while Inter hosts Fiorentina on Sunday.

Earlier, Como followed up its 4-1 thrashing of Manchester United in the Champions League with a comfortable 2-0 win over Sassuolo thanks to a Tasos Douvikas double. Bologna won at Cagliari 2-0.

Dortmund will be at least level on points with Bayern or above the German champion when the two meet next week in a top-of-the-table clash.

Dortmund got the only goal in the 80th minute after Jobe Bellingham set up fellow substitute Maximilian Beier for a sumptuous curler into the far corner against Frankfurt.

Dortmund moved three points above Bayern, which visits Freiburg on Sunday.

Elsewhere, Leipzig bounced back from heavy defeats against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid by crushing Elversberg 4-0.

Bundesliga top scorer Niclas Füllkrug scored two first-half penalties to lead Werder Bremen to a 3-2 win at Mainz. That took Füllkrug’s tally to eight in seven matches.

Union Berlin managed to draw at Augsburg 1-1 after a player from each was sent off in separate incidents.

On-loan forward Rayan Philippe scored against his parent club to give promoted Paderborn a 1-0 win over Hamburger SV.

Manchester City’s perfect start was ended by Aston Villa, allowing Arsenal to move level on points atop the standings.

Nicolas Jackson scored both goals for Villa against a City that was aiming for an eighth straight league win. Victory extended Villa’s outstanding recent run to six wins from seven games in all competitions.

Ezri Konsa and Gabriel Magalhaes scored in each half for Arsenal, which is second on goal difference.

Tottenham won at Chelsea 2-0.

There was no trouble at Rayo Vallecano — unlike in its previous home match, which had to be suspended after fan protests — but the team was beaten by fellow struggler Elche 3-0.

Espanyol coach Manolo González is under ever-increasing pressure after his side lost at Racing Santander 2-1.

Atletico Madrid played Deportivo La Coruna later and hoped to close the gap to leader Barcelona, which faces Real Madrid in the clasico at Camp Nou on Sunday.

See AP’s full soccer coverage here

Manchester City's Erling Haaland covers his face after the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Manchester City in Birmingham, England, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (Nick Potts/PA via AP)

Dortmund's Maximilian Beier, right, celebrates with Jobe Bellingham after scoring the opening goal during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt, in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (Bernd Thissen/dpa via AP)

Roma's Matías Soulé celebrates after scoring during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Roma in Naples, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Napoli's Scott McTominay scores his side's second goal, during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Roma in Naples, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

MILAN (AP) — Thousands of young people marched Saturday through the streets of several Italian cities, including Milan, Rome and Turin as authorities deployed large numbers of police and soldiers in a largely successful bid to stave off a repeat of the violent clashes and looting that marred similar protests last week.

The demonstration in Milan remained peaceful, but there were brief clashes with police in both Rome and Turin.

In Milan, thousands of young people marched the streets as soldiers were deployed and luxury boutiques were boarded up, but by late afternoon, most shops had opened, Italian media reported.

Premier Giorgia Meloni announced a raft of measures, including sending an additional 500 soldiers to Milan and tougher penalties for minors, who police said made up a large part of the violent protesters last week. In Milan, police detained several minors as a preventive measure, media reported.

While protests in France have claimed most international attention, large demonstrations also rocked many European cities Saturday from Milan to Rome to Madrid, Lisbon and Tirana.

The protests encompass a broad range of issues from education and corruption to anti-war movements, pensions and housing.

In Milan, huge crowds of mostly young people gathered as night fell, chanting insults to Meloni and holding aloft banners such as “No to lies of the state.”

A group of protesters dumped manure outside Italy’s energy regulator and burned a symbolic, oversized electricity bill, images broadcast on local television showed.

The 500 soldiers deployed to Milan came in addition to hundreds already stationed there, supporting about 5,000 police and other security personnel. Authorities used drone surveillance, checks at railway stations, rapid-response units and online monitoring for potential calls to violence.

A mayoral hopeful, Pierfrancesco Majorino, who announced his candidacy Thursday, joined the marchers and remarked how peaceful the day was, according to Italian media. He will contest a center-left primary in early 2027. Milan's center-left Mayor Giuseppe Sala, who has held the role since 2016, is not running again.

Many stores, particularly luxury boutiques within Milan's fashion district including Omega, Tiffany and Gucci, boarded up their front windows. The Apple store also shut down and remained shut even as others reopened.

Rioters last weekend smashed their way into stores, targeting sneakers, athletic wear and sporting goods on streets that run off the city’s central Duomo square.

Security measures extended beyond the city center over concerns protesters could move into other neighborhoods.

The protesters ended their march peacefully Saturday evening outside the Milan Polytechnic, more than 3 kilometers (2 miles) from the city center.

Officials said Saturday they were investigating a 30-year-old freelance journalist said to be the “mastermind” of the newly formed Oct. 17 movement, which has been the main driver of the recent protests in Italy.

Milan police say last week's violence and looting involved about 2,000 very young protesters, many of them “naturalized, second-generation Italians,” alongside foreign nationals. Over two days, police arrested 45 people, including 34 minors.

A group of about 30 far-right activists, described as hooligans linked to Inter Milan soccer club, made a brief appearance chanting anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim slogans but were isolated by police.

Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said the soldiers deployed Saturday were only recently allowed to use plastic restraint ties and only in areas around train stations, not throughout the city. They are not authorized to carry pepper spray or tasers, he said.

Security was also heightened in Rome, where authorities locked down luxury shopping streets and stepped up controls around the Circus Maximus and Piazza del Popolo.

A small number of protesters tried to force their way into the Colosseum, but were ushered out by guards. Elsewhere, several hundred students demonstrated peacefully to stress they were not rioters.

“I think the images from last week were truly something terrible, especially for the young people, for the students, for the vast majority of the younger generations who want to study ... and do not accept being represented by those who use issues and needs to devastate entire cities,” said Riccardo Ponzio, national president of an Italian far-right student association.

A separate anti-war march took place in central Rome. Organizers sought to distance themselves from potential unrest, urging participants to keep their faces uncovered and hands visible.

But it was these marchers who briefly clashed with police near the Piazza della Repubblica, even as organizers were trying to hold the crowd back using batons and tear gas. In the end, the protesters pulled back when a water cannon was turned on. They retreated to a location about half a kilometer (mile) away.

In Albania's capital Tirana, riot police used water cannons on large groups of protesters, some of whom set government buildings on fire and threw projectiles at police. Authorities said 2,500 officers patrolled the streets Saturday.

For over a week, protesters have hurled rocks, flares, firebombs and fireworks at police who have used batons and tear gas in clashes in the city center.

High school and university students are demanding lower tuition fees, greater state investment in education and protesting corruption in the education system. Some have joined a broader anti-government movement calling for the resignation of Socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama.

A separate protest organized by the opposition outside the prime minister's office turned violent earlier, with some activists lighting fires on the street.

Rama said Saturday his government was preparing a response to the students' demands and called them to a dialogue. He warned that violent protesters will face penalties.

Thousands of retirees and others marched peacefully in Spain's capital Saturday to demand public pensions aren’t meddled with.

“They are threatening us with privatizing pensions. It’s just another thing they want to profit from," said Maria José Benito, 68.

The protests came ahead of next month’s snap election as Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s Socialist Party criticized the conservative opposition Popular Party for making overtures about privatizing public pensions. Spain also has been roiled by protests this fall around the issue of housing, as rental and home costs have risen in recent years beyond what many Spaniards can afford.

Taking their cue from Spaniards, protesters in Lisbon demanding affordable housing marched across the city on Saturday.

They have also targeted recent measures announced by the government of Prime Minister Luis Montenegro that include easing the cap on yearly rent increases and facilitating the eviction of tenants who fail to pay rent.

Montenegro defends the measures saying that it aims at reinforcing trust between tenants and landlords and boosting the rentals market. Protesters claim that the measures are not balanced and put tenants in a more vulnerable position.

Nellas reported from Athens, and Hui reported from London. Associated Press writers Suman Naishadham in Madrid, Giada Zampano in Rome, and videojournalists Niccolò Lupone in Milan, Veronica Sauchelli in Rome, Alicia León in Madrid and Helena Alves in Lisbon contributed to this report.

Anti-riot police watch as demonstrators march through the streets of Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, to protest against the rising cost of living and deteriorating public services, during one of several demonstrations organized across Italy by groups spanning the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Anti-riot police watch people marching through the streets of Milan, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, to protest against the rising cost of living and deteriorating public services during one of several protests in Italy organized by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Protesters gather during an anti-government rally, in Tirana, Albania, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Hameraldi Agolli)

Riot police advance during an anti-government rally in Tirana, Albania, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Hameraldi Agolli)

Italian army paratroopers patrol the area around Milan's Duomo Cathedral, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, ahead of expected protests against the rising cost of living and deteriorating public services during one of several protests in Italy organized by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Protesters gather outside the Prime Minister's office during an anti-government rally, in Tirana, Albania, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Hameraldi Agolli)

Shop windows are boarded up in Milan, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, ahead of a protest against the rising cost of living and deteriorating public services, one of several demonstrations organized across Italy by groups spanning the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

Members of right-wing student groups march through the streets of Rome, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, during a demonstration called "Unlock Everything," organized in opposition to recent left-wing student protests and one of several demonstrations held by groups across the political spectrum. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)