Results from round 10:
Serie A table:
Schiavone gets Salernitana back in the hunt
Andrea Schiavone’s last-gasp goal helps Salernitana move past Venezia, climbing to within a point of the safety zone.
Venezia moved in front with Mattia Aramu’s strike, which meant the Lagunari were up at half-time, before Federico Bonazzoli equalised after Franck Ribery served him the assist.
Ethan Ampadu was very surprised when the referee showed him a straight red card, as the Welsh international forced his team to defend with 10 men for the final quarter of the game.
Schiavone’s 95th minute goal means Venezia now only have a point over Salernitana.
Spezia keep failing to capitalise
An important match, in which two sides whose manager’s position is at risk, ended in a draw between Genoa and Spezia.
This doesn’t essentially move the table, as Spezia remain 17th with eight points, whilst Genoa are one length and one position behind.
Thiago Motta’s side left with the most regrets, after having multiple chances and attacking for the majority of the game. Domenico Criscito’s fourth penalty of the season helped the Grifoni equalise Spezia’s earlier advantage.
Are Milan the most serious candidates for the league?
There is no stopping for Milan at the moment. Despite still having some players out through injury, the Rossoneri keep their amazing form running.
They won every game but one (at Juventus, away) and clinched all three points against Torino, despite not appearing as sharp as they usually do.
This is important, because if Stefano Pioli’s team start winning even without dominating, then they will be a threat.
Their huge lead over third place makes them serious candidates and the fans will thank Olivier Giroud for his winning goal against Torino.
Udinese remain winless in seven games
After a great start to the season, Udinese still can’t find a win, albeit remaining unbeaten in their last four matches.
Luca Gotti’s team are denied by Hellas Verona, who equalised with a penalty converted by Antonin Barak despite only managing five shots across the game.
Both sides each make a small step forward. Verona move up to 11th with 12 points, Udinese follow a point short in 14th.
Duvan Zapata leads Atalanta back against Sampdoria
Sampdoria haven’t been helped by the calendar, having already played five of the big seven teams in the opening 10 matches.
The Blucerchiati found the net first with Francesco Caputo against Atalanta, but La Dea overturned the result with two goals in quick succession.
Duvan Zapata’s header was deflected by Kristoffer Askildsen, and then the Columbian scored a goal which was fully awarded to him. Josip Ilicic’s contribution in stoppage time meant the game ended 3-1 at the Stadio Marassi.
Incredible showdown sees Sassuolo conquer the Allianz Stadium
15 points in 10 games is definitely not what Juventus fans expected at the start of the season. After a few games in which they seemed to find some form back, the Bianconeri only won a point in the last two.
Juventus suffered against Sassuolo, struggling in the attacking areas and going down with Davide Frattesi’s opener.
Weston McKennie equalised and Juventus spent the last minutes going forward, but were shocked by Maxime Lopez’s counter-attack. The French midfielder chipped Mattia Perin and Sassuolo won with just seconds to spare.
Pellegrini wins it with a free-kick
Cagliari and Roma produced and exciting game, with the Sardinians creating a lot more than their last-place on the table would suggest they could.
Leonardo Pavoletti’s first goal of the season brought them in front, but the striker was guilty of missing two golden chances that could bring Cagliari two goals up.
The game kept seeing opportunities at both ends, but it was Roma who won it on set pieces. Lorenzo Pellegrini’s corner was received by Roger Ibanez, who equalised.
Moments later, the Roma captain scored the winner from a direct free-kick, keeping Roma in the top four, a point in front of Atalanta.
Lazio return in the top seven with Pedro
Maurizio Sarri’s team overtake Fiorentina in the table and return in the top seven, just as La Viola drop out.
The game had a very slow tempo, with just three shots on target across the whole match. It was Pedro who found the net after an initiative by Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, giving Lazio their third consecutive home win.
It’s a harsh stop for Fiorentina, who will be looking to bounce back after what still remains a positive start to the season.
Inter’s jollies make the Nerazzurri bounce back
Federico Dimarco and Danilo D’Ambrosio: two players that may not be absolute protagonists, but that helped Inter moved past Empoli.
D’Ambrosio saved a goal by clearing a shot on the line and later scored, proving his good abilities at finding goals. The defender doesn’t play very often, but when he does, he is often one of the best players on the pitch and has a great affinity with finding the net.
Dimarco is another jolly for Inter. He became a regular starter that can play in multiple positions, allowing to rest some players in this tight schedule.
Few players have a touch as good as Dimarco’s, with the wing-back netting the second goal which sealed the game for Inter after two faux-pas against Lazio and Juventus.
Napoli respond to Milan like in the old days
Milan and Napoli are in a league of their own. Both teams dropped two points in the opening 10 matches, doing so away against one of the big seven clubs.
It’s only the first time in Serie A history that two teams start so well in the same season and Napoli do so by keeping the incredible score of only three goals conceded.
They cleared Bologna with two penalties from captain Lorenzo Insigne, who missed the last two, but coach Luciano Spalletti put trust in him, jokingly claiming the following ones would have been taken by “Lorenzo, then Insigne and then the club captain.”
With Napoli and Milan on top, fans surely will think back at the good old days in which Milan and Napoli fought for the league in the name of Marco Van Basten and Diego Maradona.
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