Serie A high-flyers Lazio edged past relegation candidates Palermo by a solitary strike from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.

On paper it should have been a mismatch, with the hosts on a run of six successive defeats and the Biancocelesti unbeaten since September 20, but the eventual scoreline left Lazio sweating until the final whistle.

Simone Inzaghi's side had the best of the match and created plenty of chances to make their lead more comfortable but had to settle for a narrow win, Milinkovic-Savic finishing deftly off his instep in the 31st minute after Dusan Basta's run and cutback.

Giancarlo Gonzalez was sent off in the closing stages, compounding Palermo's woes.