Inter beats Venezia to trim gap to Napoli to 1 point after league leader loses against Atalanta

MILAN (AP) — Inter Milan moved just one point behind Serie A leader Napoli ahead of their early title showdown next weekend.

Lautaro Martínez scored the only goal of the match to help Inter to a 1-0 win over lowly Venezia on Sunday, shortly after Napoli was stunned 3-0 at home by Atalanta.

Napoli coach Antonio Conte, who led Inter to the Serie A title in 2021, takes his team to San Siro next Sunday.

Inter has another tough match before that as it hosts Arsenal in the Champions League on Wednesday.

It was an entertaining match at San Siro on Sunday and Inter, which knew it could cut the gap to Napoli to a solitary point, had plenty of chances. But Nerazzurri goalkeeper Yann Sommer was also kept busy.

Inter thought it had taken the lead seven minutes into the second half when Federico Dimarco rolled the ball across from the left for Henrikh Mkhitaryan to blast into the roof of the net but it was ruled out for offside.

The home side did break the deadlock in the 65th minute in almost identical fashion as Dimarco whipped in another cross for Lautaro to head into the far bottom corner.

Venezia thought it had leveled in the seventh minute of stoppage time when Marin Sverko bundled in a cross and the whole of the Venezia bench streamed onto the field in celebration but it was ruled out by VAR for handball.

Despite — or perhaps because of — the absence of the league’s top goalscorer from the starting lineup, Atalanta inflicted what was only Napoli’s second defeat of the season, and the first since the opening day.

Atalanta moved up to third, three points below Napoli.

Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini surprisingly opted to drop Mateo Retegui. That was reportedly because he wanted a more unpredictable attack against a Napoli defense that had kept clean sheets in six of its past seven matches and only conceded five goals all season.

Gasperini instead picked Ademola Lookman and Charles De Ketelaere in attack with Mario Pasalic behind them and that paid off almost immediately as Atalanta took the lead in the 10th minute.

A cross was cleared by Napoli but only as far as the edge of the area where it was put back in and De Ketelaere nodded it back for Lookman to slot into the near bottom corner.

Napoli almost leveled immediately but Scott McTominay’s powerful effort crashed off the right post.

The Atalanta forwards combined again in the 31st as De Ketelaere raced down the right and squirmed between two players before passing across to Lookman, who slotted a hard shot into the far bottom corner.

Sead Kolasinac thought he had extended Atalanta’s lead early in the second half but the defender was offside.

Retegui was brought on for De Ketelaere with 14 minutes remaining and he volleyed a cross into the bottom right corner in stoppage time for his 11th goal in as many matches.

Roma coach Ivan Juric is under even more pressure after the capital side lost 3-2 at Hellas Verona.

It was a third defeat in seven league matches since Juric replaced the fired Daniele De Rossi.

Verona, which had lost five of its last six matches, moved up to 12th and just a point below Roma.

Fiorentina rose to fourth after a 1-0 win at Torino for its seventh straight victory in all competitions.

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Inter Milan's head coach Simone Inzaghi follows the game during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Venezia at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez, center, scores his side's first goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Venezia at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez, center, celebrates with his teammates after he scored his side's first goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Venezia at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez celebrates after he scored his side's first goal during the Serie A soccer match between Inter Milan and Venezia at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)

Napoli's Romelu Lukaku is surrounded by Atalanta players during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Atalanta at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, southern italy, Sunday , Nov. 3 , 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Napoli's head coach Antonio Conte shouts instructions during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Atalanta at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, southern italy, Sunday , Nov. 3 , 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Atalanta's head coach Gian Piero Gasperini shouts instractions during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Atalanta at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, southern italy, Sunday , Nov. 3 , 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Atalanta's Ademola Lookman scores his team's second goal during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Atalanta at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, southern italy, Sunday , Nov. 3 , 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

Atalanta's Ademola Lookman celebrates after scoring his team's second goal during the Serie A soccer match between Napoli and Atalanta at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples, southern italy, Sunday , Nov. 3 , 2024. (Alessandro Garofalo/LaPresse via AP)

CETINJE, Montenegro (AP) — Shock and dismay prevailed in Montenegro on Thursday after a gunman fatally shot 12 people, including two children, in a western town before killing himself.

At least four others were wounded in the shooting rampage in Cetinje on Wednesday that followed a bar brawl, officials said. This was the second such incident in the town in the past three years.

Hundreds gathered on Thursday evening at the main square in Cetinje for a candlelight vigil in the memory of the victims.

Police Commissioner Lazar Šćepanović described Wednesday’s shooting as “one of the biggest tragedies in the history of Montenegro.”

He said at a news conference that the victims included seven men, three women and two children, born in 2011 and 2016.

“Most of the victims were people he knew, his closest friends and relatives,” including the shooter’s sister, Šćepanović said. “This criminal act wasn’t planned or organized. It was unpredictable.”

The shooter, identified as 45-year-old Aco Martinović, killed the owner of the bar, the bar owner's children and his own family members, officials have said.

The attacker, who first fled after the rampage, was later located and surrounded by police. He died after shooting himself in the head, police said.

Residents of Cetinje, a town of some 17,000 people, were stunned and grief-stricken.

"I knew all of these people personally, also the attacker. I think when he did that, he was out of his mind," said Vesko Milošević, a retiree from Cetnje. "What do I know, he went from place to place and killed people. Its a catastrophe.”

Vanja Popović, whose relatives are among the victims, said that “we are all in shock.”

“How can I feel after this?" Popović said. "No one expected it. You can’t even ask anyone anything.”

Police had dispatched a special unit to search for the attacker in the town, which is located about 30 kilometers (18 miles) northwest of Podgorica, the country's capital. All roads in and out of Cetinje were blocked for hours as police swarmed the streets.

Police said that the shooter had died while being taken to a hospital in the capital and succumbed from the “severity of his injuries.”

Officials have said that the attacker was at the bar throughout the day with other guests when the brawl erupted. He then went home, brought back a weapon and opened fire at around 5:30 p.m.

Prosecutor Andrijana Nastić said Thursday that the attacker went to six locations during the shooting rampage, including the last one, where he shot himself.

Four men were killed at the bar, she said. The shooter then moved on to another location where he killed four more people, and then two children at a third site. He then went on to kill two more people at two other locations before eventually shooting himself, Nastić said.

“Further investigation will determine the exact circumstances of the events,” she added.

The government has declared three days of national mourning starting on Thursday, and all planned New Year's festivities have been canceled throughout the country.

Prime Minister Milojko Spajić said that the government may try to impose a total ban on weapons “because we must ask ourselves after this who should be allowed to have guns in Montenegro.”

The small Adriatic Sea nation, which has a population of around 620,000 people, is known for its gun culture and many people traditionally have weapons.

In August 2022 in Cetinje, which is Montenegro’s historic capital, an attacker killed 10 people, including two children, before he was shot and killed by a passerby.

Police have said that the suspect in Wednesday's shooting received a suspended sentence in 2005 for violent behavior and had appealed his latest conviction for illegal weapons possession. Montenegrin media have reported that he was known for erratic and violent behavior.

“Instead of holiday joy ... we have been gripped by sadness over the loss of innocent lives,” Montenegro's President Jakov Milatović said in a post on X.

Associated Press writers Jovana Gec and Dušan Stojanović contributed to this report from Belgrade, Serbia.

A view of blood by the door of a bar after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

A police car outside a house after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

A view of a bar after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

A view of a police vehicle at the home of a gunman after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

A view of a police vehicle at the home of a gunman after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

Police officers stand guard at the home of a gunman after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

Police officers stand guard at the home of a gunman after a shooting incident, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

A police officer stands guard at the scene after a shooting incident at a bar, in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

Rescue workers work at the site of a shooting in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Wednesday, Jan 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

Police investigators work at the site of a shooting in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Wednesday, Jan 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)

Police investigators work at the site of a shooting in Cetinje, 36 kilometers (22 miles) west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Wednesday, Jan 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Risto Bozovic)