Torino vs. Fiorentina, final score 0-0: No goals, but plenty of excitement in Turin

A 0-0 draw may suggest a boring game, but Torino - Fiorentina certainly wasn't that. It may have been predictable how it would look on the pitch - Fiorentina likes to keep the ball; while Giampiero Ventura built Torino's reputation based on quick counter attacks.

Visitors started the match without four of their regular starts. Mario Gomez has been missing for months, Giuseppe Rossi got injured last week, and Alberto Aquilani and Manuel Pasqual were also out hurt. Playing in a 4-3-3 formation, without a real striker, the viola were always going to struggle to score. even though they created a lot of chances. Torino had Alexandr Farnerud back, but were still without Ciro Immobile. With nine goals scored thus far, they certainly missed his goalscoring abilities.

The first half got off to a slow start, with little pressure high up the pitch on either side. But after about ten minutes, things livened up. Fiorentina, as they often do, tried to create 2vs1 situations. They were particularly successful against against Giovanni Pasquale, Torino's left wing back, who had a lot of problems dealing with Juan Cuadrado and Mati Fernandez, while Joaquin, who often changed positions with Cuadrado, gave them trouble as well.

To stop Toro's biggest threat, Vincenzo Montella had Facundo Roncaglia man mark Alessio Cerci. It worked to an extent; however, the hosts were still able to create several dangerous quick breaks, panicking the viola defense.

In the end, the home side will be happier for closing Fiorentina down. The result leaves the visitors unable to reach Napoli in third, while Ventura's boys are currently 8th, far away from the relegation battle and still above the big teams like Milan and Lazio.

Fiorentina: Neto; Roncaglia, Gonzalo Rodriguez, Savic, Tomovic; Mati Fernandez (79'), Pizarro, Borja Valero; Joaquin (Matos 85'), Ilicic (Iakovenko), Cuadrado