Serie A Week 1: Late Goal Gives Fiorentina 1-1 Draw Against Juventus
September 2nd 2008 23:23
In another upset on Sunday, Juventus saw themselves lose their one-goal lead over Fiorentina in the dying minutes of the game. The draw was only justice for Fiorentina who dominated the first twenty minutes of the game without converting their opportunities. Their numerous free-kicks were awfully botched by their strikers while Buffon and his defense stood tall for everything else. With Fiorentina's domination, Juventus were forced to attack on the break with the hope of stopping their opponents' fierceness with a goal. For every screwed-up Viola free-kick, Juventus attacked with the same tenacity as the home side. As a result, the visitors slowly ate away Fiorentina's control of the ball, ending the first half on a balanced note along with a 1-0 lead. The goal came at the 36th when Pavel Nedved celebrated his birthday by easily tapping in Camoranesi's cross. Suprisingly, Del Piero was strangely quiet in the first half-hour, surfacing only before half-time when Frey denied him on a one-on-one.
The second half was a battle between the two teams as Juventus looked to add to their lead while Fiorentina desperately wanted their equalizer. The visitors found their task eased by the expulsion of Felipe Melo at the 83rd minute. However, Fiorentina hadn't said their last word. At the 88th minute, Alberto Gilardino, tightly marked by Mellberg managed to turn around and take a shot in a off-balance position. The weak shot suprised Buffon who didn't even dive for it, thinking that it was going wide. Claudio Ranieri tried to rejuvenate his team's offense by puting in Iaquinta, but it was simply too late. Fiorentina satisfiedly walked away with a point while Juventus was left to ponder what had just happened.
Juventus' line-up: Gianluigi Buffon; Nicola Legrottaglie, Olof Mellberg, Zdenek Grygera, Cristian Molinaro (Paolo De Ceglie, 75th); Christian Poulsen, Pavel Nedved, Mauro Camoranesi (Vincenzo Iaquinta, 88th), Claudio Marchisio; Alessandro Del Piero, Amauri.
The second half was a battle between the two teams as Juventus looked to add to their lead while Fiorentina desperately wanted their equalizer. The visitors found their task eased by the expulsion of Felipe Melo at the 83rd minute. However, Fiorentina hadn't said their last word. At the 88th minute, Alberto Gilardino, tightly marked by Mellberg managed to turn around and take a shot in a off-balance position. The weak shot suprised Buffon who didn't even dive for it, thinking that it was going wide. Claudio Ranieri tried to rejuvenate his team's offense by puting in Iaquinta, but it was simply too late. Fiorentina satisfiedly walked away with a point while Juventus was left to ponder what had just happened.
Highlights & Goals
Juventus' line-up: Gianluigi Buffon; Nicola Legrottaglie, Olof Mellberg, Zdenek Grygera, Cristian Molinaro (Paolo De Ceglie, 75th); Christian Poulsen, Pavel Nedved, Mauro Camoranesi (Vincenzo Iaquinta, 88th), Claudio Marchisio; Alessandro Del Piero, Amauri.
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