MILAN Alberto Zaccheroni's return to the San Siro as Lazio coach ended in defeat on Sunday as goals from Filippo Inzaghi and Martin Laursen gave AC Milan a 2-0 win which takes them level at the top of Serie A with Juventus and Inter.

Lazio, without a win so far this season in four Serie A and two Champions League games, had to play the last half hour with ten men when Dino Baggio limped off after Zaccheroni had used all three of his substitutes.

That robbed the Rome side of any realistic chance of launching a comeback, but Zaccheroni, who replaced the sacked Dino Zoff on Thursday, will still be disappointed with the overall display from his team.

Milan made an enterprising start with Brazilian winger Serginho in particularly lively form on the left flank and it was he who fed Inzaghi in the fifth minute whose sharp shot on the turn flashed just wide of Angelo Peruzzi's left-hand post.

But Lazio had a golden opportunity to open the scoring when, after an error by Milan's Georgian defender Kakha Kaladze, Claudio Lopez picked out an unmarked Hernan Crespo in the middle but the Argentine saw Milan 'keeper Christian Abbiati get enough of his body on his low shot to deflect up onto the bar.

Three minutes before the break Milan had the advantage when Romanian Cosmin Contra jiggled his way into space for a cross from the right and Inzaghi met it with a pinpoint glancing header, said Reuters.

Zaccheroni replaced Crespo with Yugoslav Darko Kovacevic at the break, having made an earlier tactical switch by swapping Giuseppe Favalli for Argentine Lucas Castroman.

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But just six minutes after the restart Milan doubled their lead when a corner came back out to Rui Costa on the right and Danish defender Laursen beat Peruzzi with a diving header.

Lazio's woes were added to when Alessandro Nesta was taken off injured in the 58th minute. After Baggio hobbled out of action the game lost its edge as Milan were content to play possession football with the comfort of their lead and Lazio lost all shape.

The result continues Zaccheroni's miserable record against teams coached by Milan Chief Fatih Terim.

Last season as coach of Fiorentina, Terim knocked Zaccheroni's Milan out of the Italian cup and crushed them 4-0 in the league, while in the previous year Terim's Galatasaray defeated Milan in Istanbul to eliminate them from the first group stage of the Champions League.