Serie A, Week 32: AC Milan Move Three Points Clear Of Napoli With 2-1 Win Over Fiorentina

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Sunday

Milan were dominant from the beginning and saw that dominance pay off in just the seventh minute. Zlatan Ibrahimovic played Seedorf in, only to have a sliding tackle knock the ball away. The ball was only knocked as far away as Pato though and with the defender still on the ground, Pato played Seedorf in. The veteran Seedorf only had to fire the ball into the net and Milan were ahead 1-0.

The second half was a bit more level then the first, but Fiorentina never looked sure to score until right before they did. The Viola finally woke up their sleeping crowd with a bit of pressure that eventually resulted in an 80th minute goal. A rebound came right to Juan Manuel Vargas, who benefited from a slight deflection in beating a Christian Abiatti to give the Viola some hope.

Fiorentina upped the pressure and when a shot was fired at Christian Abiatti, he had no choice but to just block it. That block left a rebound right on Vargas’ foot and the Peruvian took advantage, striking the ball on goal for the first of two goals that the Viola need. Vargas’ shot took a deflection along the way, but with Abiatti on the ground, it is unlikely that the deflection affected much. The goal did affect the match though as the home side now have regained the support of their fans and are beginning to control the pace of the match. The question is whether it is too little, too late? Is there enough time for them to fina an equalizer?

Fiorentina Starting XI: Boruc; Comotto, Gamberini, Natali, Pasqual; Donadel, Montolivo; Vargas, Santana, Ljajic; Gilardino

AC Milan Starting XI: Abbiati, Abate, Yepes, Silva, Zambrotta, Flamini, van Bommel, Seedorf, Boateng, Pato, Ibrahimovic

With Edinson Cavani stuck watching from the stands, the only question was, who would convert the penalty? It was Hamsik that stepped up to take, perhaps hoping to make amends for his previous mental lapse. Amend he did, sending the shot straight down the middle and then celebrating by committing a two-footed flying kick on the corner flag. Fortunately there are no fouls awarded for the abuse of equipment, and Napoli manage to go into the halftime break with all eleven men.

I’d love to say it had been coming, but the Udinese goal certainly hadn’t. Yes, they were attacking, but they were also sloppy, losing plenty of possession in midfield. It looked as though Udinese would be facing their second straight loss of 2011 when Antonio Di Natale scored the equalizer in the 88th minute.Substitute Bernardo Corradi won the header, which fell to Toto’s feet. The Udinese captain neatly put away the shot to record his 26th goal on the season. Considering Toto Di Natale had been playing almost the entire match with a grimace on his face, clearly hurting from a knock, the goal was made even sweeter.

Shortly thereafter, Udinese very nearly scored the winner after a fantastic counter-attack. The zebrette swarmed the area, taking at least one hundred shots on goal. One bounced over the line, but unfortunately for Udinese, someone forgot to tell Kwadwo Asamoah that only goalies can use their hands, and the ref blew the whistle for a Roma free kick.

Nearly an hour in and AS Roma have finally broken the deadlock against Udinese, thanks to a classic Francesco Totti penalty conversion. David Pizzaro, free at the edge of the area, was brought down by Maurizio Domizzi -- one of the most clear-cut penalties one could hope to see. And when captain Totti is on the field, the penalties are his, with this particular penalty showing the world exactly why. Totti stepped up and nearly swaggered toward the spot before sending his trademark spoon shot over Udinese keeper Samir Handanović. The cucchiaio curled just perfectly around and over the area before dropping into the net.

The shot was a stunner, one typical of Totti but one that hadn’t been seen in quite some time. But when else but today, when Roma are fighting for a Champions League position? Keeping the lead will see Roma close the gap on the leaders, edging closer to rivals Lazio.

Roma bench: Lobont, Loria, Caprari, Simplicio, Taddei, Perrotta, Borriello

It was Cambiasso that broke the deadlock in the 65th minute. Lucio and Maicon combined up the right flank before Maicon spotted Cambiasso in acres of space in the middle of the area. After the Argentine received the ball, he had plenty of time to set up his shot, sending it low through a crowded box and on past Stefano Sorrentino.

It appeared as though Cambiasso’s goal would be all Inter needed to take all three points. Then, in the 84th minute, Fernando Uribe, on for Mariano Bogliacino, hit the side netting, rattling the nerazzurri nerves as he did so. But Inter’s response was cool and collected: After Diego Milto’s shot was smothered by a gaggle of Chievo players, Maicon picked up the loose ball, slotting it home for what would be the decisive goal.

Week 32 in Italy kicks off with Chievo traveling to the San Siro to meet an Inter Milan side that absolutely must win. After a 3-0 loss to AC Milan last weekend, the nerazzurri were demolished by Schalke 04 in the Champions League, the Germans taking a 5-2 win back home. In good news for an Inter side that’s conceded eight goals in a week, Lucio returns from suspension to take his place in the back line. With Wesley Sneijder resigned to the bench after taking a beating from fellow Netherlands international Mark van Bommel, Inter will shift their shape away from the 4-2-1-3 they’ve been attempting recently, moving toward a 4-4-1-1.

As for Chievo, well, they play a 5-3-2. So this should be thrilling from the Flying Donkeys.

Ok, let’s face it. After the Milan derby last week, which managed to be one of the most boring 3-0 victories every completed, it’s tough to get excited about Week 32 in Serie A. Add to that Nando Muslera’s land-wars-in-Asia strategy for dealing with Edinson Cavani (the Napoli striker is clearly immune to iocane powder, by the way) and the fact that Bari actually won a match, well, it might be impossible for this weekend to be as intriguing as last. Although Juventus finally have a chance to win three in a row, so that’s something.

Saturday