Sunday 13 December 2009

Serie A - Week 16: Sunday Review

Milan 0-2 PalermoBeaten 2-0 at home by Palermo, Serie A title hopefuls AC Milan failed to capitalise on a 1-1 draw at Atalanta for city rivals and championship pacesetters Inter. It was a day of shocks elsewhere as Fiorentina, Genoa and Udinese all lost but Parma's fairytale start to the season continues.

Milan 0-2 Palermo
AC Milan's title challenge hit a hurdle as Palermo left the San Siro with a well-deserved 2-0 victory. The home side, who came into the contest on the back of five successive wins domestically, were undone by second-half efforts from Fabrizio Miccoli and Mark Bresciano. Leonardo's men are now five points behind leaders Inter, who were held to a 1-1 draw at struggling Atalanta. The back-to-back wins, meanwhile, takes Delio Rossi's Palermo to within two points of the European places.


Atalanta 1-1 InterAtalanta 1-1 Inter
Inter extended their lead at the top of Serie A to five points despite being held 1-1 at struggling regional rivals Atalanta. Diego Milito gave the Nerazzurri the lead after 14 minutes, but Simone Tiribocchi equalised for the hosts with nine minutes remaining after Wesley Sneijder had been sent off shortly after the hour mark to put Inter on the back foot. With second-placed Milan and Juventus, who are third, both losing this weekend, the draw was still enough for Jose Mourinho's side to strengthen their hold on top spot. Despite battling back to take a point, Atalanta dropped into the bottom three, two points behind Livorno.

Parma 2-1 BolognaParma 2-1 Bologna
Parma missed a penalty but still came from behind to beat 10-man Bologna 2-1 and move clear in fourth place in Serie A. After plenty of first-half Parma pressure, Bologna had taken the lead with a swift counter-attack moments before half-time through Gaby Mudingayi. Christian Panucci headed Parma level after 57 minutes, but Nicola Amoruso then missed the chance to put them ahead, hitting the post with a penalty after Miguel Britos had seen red for bringing down Blerim Dzemaili. However, Amoruso made up for it four minutes from time, tapping home after a neat move to seal the three points.

Chievo 2-1 FiorentinaChievo 2-1 Fiorentina
Chievo took full advantage of a jaded Fiorentina side to claim a 2-1 win in Serie A. The Viola took an early lead at the Stadio Marc' Antonio Bentegodi through Riccardo Montolivo, but it soon became apparent they had failed to recover from their midweek European exertions in time. Chievo hit back almost immediately with goals from Giampiero Pinzi and Gennaro Sardo, with Fiorentina unable to find the energy levels needed to get anything from the match. The win sees Chievo move above their opponents in the standings, with the pair in a group of clubs locked on 24 points.

Lazio 1-0 GenoaLazio 1-0 Genoa
Aleksandar Kolarov stopped the rot for Lazio as his first-half goal sunk Genoa 1-0 in an entertaining match at Rome's Stadio Olimpico. The Serbian left-back struck after 39 minutes to hand Lazio their first win in Serie A since the end of August. Genoa suffered a blow after 65 minutes after Salvatore Bocchetti was handed his marching orders following two bookable offences. The visitors were unlucky not to claim at least a point against a determined Lazio after twice being denied by the woodwork.

Siena 2-1 UdineseSiena 2-1 Udinese
Abdelkader Ghezzal and Gaetano D'Agostino traded injury-time goals as struggling Siena held off Udinese in an exciting finale to claim a 2-1 victory at the Stadio Artemio Franchi. The result could prove crucial for the hosts, who moved off the bottom of Serie A, in place of Catania, thanks to their three-point haul. Massimo Maccarone had given them the lead after 66 minutes and it looked like that goal would be enough until the stoppage-time drama that left the Stadio Artemio Franchi faithful breathless.

Catania 0-1 LivornoCatania 0-1 Livorno
Tomas Danilevicius' late goal ensured Livorno climbed out of the relegation zone with a much-needed 1-0 victory at strugglers Catania. The Lithuanian forward struck two minutes from time to hand the Tuscan outfit their fourth win of the season and ruin Sinisa Mihajlovic's coaching debut at Catania. The hosts were unlucky not to claim a point after Jorge Alvarez struck the post deep in stoppage time. Catania also finished the game with 10 men after Giuseppe Mascara was sent off five minutes before the end for a double booking. The result has lifted Livorno one place and two points above the drop zone after 16 games played, while it has sunk Catania to the foot of the standings.

Sampdoria 0-0 RomaSampdoria 0-0 Roma
Sampdoria and Roma both benefited from a goalless draw at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Sunday night as they moved into a share of fifth position in Serie A. Chances were few and far between on a bitterly cold night in Liguria, although Roma created the better opportunities in a strong half-hour spell in the second half. After a bright start, Samp started to suffer as they have done in recent weeks, but they showed the strength to react and clinch a point which sees them rise five places in the table, just three points behind fourth-placed Parma.

SERIE A REVIEW:
[Saturday 12 December] - [Sunday 13 December]

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