ROME - Inter Milan were forced to slam the brakes on their upswing form on Monday, as they were held to a goalless tie by relegation battlers Sampdoria in Serie A.

The Nerazzurri went into Monday's game with three consecutive wins across Coppa Italia and Serie A, but it was far from a vintage performance for Inter at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium as Inter failed to find the back of the net despite the lion's share of the shots.

After the setback, second-placed Inter saw their gap to table leaders Napoli extended to 15 points with 16 rounds left, while the blucerchiati are in penultimate place with only 11 points.

Earlier on Monday, Hellas Verona edged past Salernitana 1-0 thanks to a solo effort from Cyril Ngonge.