This late stage of the season is about results rather than performances, and four of the top five in Serie A secured maximum points this weekend. Udinese, on the other hand, managed neither a result nor a performance in Saturday evening’s game.
To be fair to Francesco Guidolin's side, they were dealt a cruel blow before kick-off when one of their main threats, Alexis Sanchez, suffered an injury in the warm-up and was unable to play. This meant that captain Antonio Di Natale was isolated up front for the vast majority of the game, though he did carve out a fine goal from his only real chance to pull out in front of the Serie A goalscoring charts on 26. Francesco Totti’s penalty and 94th-minute strike canceled out Di Natale’s goal however and earned a 2-1 victory for Roma.
Ironically, the other team who profited from Totti’s efficiency in front of goal were Roma rivals Lazio, who replaced Udinese in fourth place when they beat Parma on Sunday at the Stadio Olimpico. Midfielder Hernanez questioned his exclusion from last week’s Lazio line-up in the best possible way by putting the Biancoceleste into the lead in the 23rd minute, and substitute Sergio Floccari went on to seal the points with a classy 77th-minute finish.
Inter put their nightmare midweek Champions League game against Schalke behind them by beating Chievo 2-0 on Saturday to temporarily move into second place in the table. With Lúcio back in their defensive line-up, and Cristian Chivu suspended, they managed to keep a clean sheet for the first time since Lúcio last played. Funny that.
Napoli regained second place by beating Bologna 2-0 on Sunday afternoon. The 15,000 Vesuviani fans who made the long journey north for this game will have been relieved to see their side find the net twice despite the absence of their top scorer Edinson Cavani, who was suspended.
AC Milan boss Massimiliano Allegri must have been frustrated to see striker Zlatan Ibrahimović earn himself a new suspension upon his return from a two-game suspension. Milan were 2-0 up on Fiorentina at half time thanks to goals from Clarence Seedorf and Alexandre Pato, but an 80th-minute goal from Juan Manuel Vargas gave the hosts some hope, which was added to by Ibrahimović’s dismissal seven minutes later (apparently for dissent). Milan held on in the end to maintain their five-point advantage over Napoli.
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| Seedorf: helping Milan to close in on the Scudetto |
Luca Toni’s late winner in Sunday’s early game gave Juventus a 3-2 win over Toni’s previous employers Genoa. The visitors led twice in an entertaining encounter, but Toni gave the home side renewed hope of a European place for next season with just seven minutes remaining.
Coach Delio Rossi was denied a winning return to the Palermo bench in bizarre fashion when ten-man Cesena leveled the game with two late goals. The home side appeared to be cruising when Mauricio Pinilla put them 2-0 up on 36 minutes, but two stoppage-time goals earned a point for Cesena, who also had two substitutes red-carded during the late stages of the game.
Lecce followed their fine win over Udinese last week with a 2-1 victory away to Sampdoria. The visitors were already 2-0 up by the time Sampdoria's Daniele Mannini was sent off in the 72nd minute, and this result moves them further towards safety while their opponents face a nervous conclusion to the season.
Elsewhere, Maxi López scored a 44th-minute equaliser to earn Catania a 1-1 draw at Bari. Brescia’s visit to Cagliari also produced a 1-1 scoreline, but their frontman Eder was sent off late in the game, as was coach Giuseppe Iachini.
Til next time…
Serie A: week 32 results
Inter 2-0 Chievo
Udinese 1-2 Roma
Juventus 3-2 Genoa
Bari 1-1 Catania
Bologna 0-2 Napoli
Cagliari 1-1 Brescia
Lazio 2-0 Parma
Palermo 2-2 Cesena
Sampdoria 1-2 Lecce
Fiorentina 1-2 AC Milan
