Round 21 of Serie A action was full of unwanted surprises for some of Italy’s bigger sides, particularly the Milanese giants.
With just one scoreless draw in the ten fixtures, we were treated to 29 goals in total across the other nine games.
Breaking from tradition, we will start not with the weekend’s first game, but rather with its undisputed biggest. Juventus saw off Roma on Sunday evening, in what was ultimately a comfortable 1-0 win. Though the scoreline will suggest a relatively tight affair, the Bianconeri never looked like losing, or even sharing the points with their opponents.
Paulo Dybala scored the only goal on the night with an extremely well-taken finish after getting on the end of a Paul Pogba pass. The result saw Juve close the lead at the top of the table to just two points once again. What’s more: Massimiliano Allegri’s men now sit ten points ahead of the Giallorossi; remarkable, given their start to the campaign.
Resuming protocol now, the round’s action got underway at the Stadio Matusa, where two struggling sides played out an uneventful 0-0 draw. Frosinone and Atalanta could not be separated and both seemed to be happy to settle for a point from the off. The Canarini started the brighter while the visitors finished stronger, but neither managed to break the deadlock and a draw was probably the right result.
In Saturday’s other game, Empoli and AC Milan also drew, but shared four goals between them. Clinical striker Carlos Bacca put the Rossoneri ahead with just eight minutes on the clock, only to have his goal cancelled out by Piotr Zielinski just after the half-hour mark.
The Rossoneri started the second half similarly, with Giacomo Bonaventura restoring their lead just three minutes after the break. Veteran striker Massimo Maccarone then drew the hosts level again on the hour mark, which proved to be the last of the goals as the sides drew 2-2.
Fiorentina and Torino got Sunday’s action underway and it was La Viola who ended the early fixture the happier side. Josip Ilicic broke the deadlock with a typically glorious free-kick before Gonzalo Rodriguez sealed a 2-0 win for Paulo Sousa’s side, putting an end to their recent poor run of form.
Napoli ensured they remained at Serie A’s summit with a thrilling 4-2 win over Sampdoria at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. Gonzalo Higuain and Lorenzo Insigne put the Partenopei ahead early on before Joaquin Correa reduced Samp’s deficit right on half-time.
Marek Hamsik then restored his side’s two-goal cushion only to see Eder pull Samp within one goal not long after. Dries Mertens completed the scoring with just over ten minutes to play, celebrating by running over to the Napoli bench with the entire team in a show of support for Nathaniel Chalobah, whose mother recently passed away.
Inter failed to win for the third consecutive week as a late Kevin Lasagna strike stole a point for Serie A minnows Carpi. Rodrigo Palacio had given the Biscione a first-half lead but Roberto Mancini’s side failed to kill the game off, despite the Biancorossi playing out the final ten minutes with ten men following Lorenzo Pasciuti’s dismissal.
Despite falling behind at home to Chievo, Lazio bounced back to record a resounding 4-1 victory. Bostjan Cesar had the Flying Donkeys soaring after just five minutes and they held onto their lead for an hour after going in front. The goalscorer went from hero to villain as he saw red for a second bookable offense just two minutes into the second half. Antonio Candreva drew the Biancocelesti level
Antonio Candreva then drew the Biancocelesti level before Danilo Cataldi gave them the lead with less than 20 minutes to play. Candreva grabbed a second in the 81st minute before Stefan Radu was given his marching orders. Alberto Paloschi missed a chance to pull Chievo back within touching distance as he missed a late penalty, which allowed Keita Balde to cap off a comprehensive win as he added a fourth for the hosts in the game’s final moments.
Sassuolo‘s unbeaten home record this season came to a rather surprising end as Bologna left the Mapei Stadium with a 2-0 win. Emanuele Giaccherini put Roberto Donadoni’s side ahead in the second half ahead of Sergio Floccari returning to haunt his former side as he rounded off the win in the 90th minute. The former Neroverdi man dedicated the win to team-mate Juan Zuniga, who recently lost his father.
A 4-1 win for Palermo over Udinese saw them leapfrog the Zebrette in the Serie A table. Robin Quaison scored the only goal of the first-half before Oscar Hiljemark and Achraf Lazaar extended the Rosanero’s lead. Cyril Thereau then drew a goal back for the visitors, which was ultimately no more than a consolation as Aleksandar Trajkovsi completed the scoring.
Hellas Verona‘s wait for a 2015/16 win continued as they welcomed Genoa to the Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi. Ferdinando Coppola has the misfortune of putting his side behind with an own goal in the opening 20 minutes. Giampaolo Pazzini drew the Mastini level before the break in what proved to be the final goal of the day, meaning the spoils were shared in a 1-1 draw.
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Source: forzaitalianfootball.com