Serie A Team of Week 20: Klose Torments Inzaghi's Milan, Moretti Shocks Inter
Roma failed to keep pace with Juventus this weekend, drawing with Fiorentina in Florence as the Bianconeri comfortably beat Chievo Verona in Turin.
The draw saw them drop points for the third time in a row, and the Giallorossi are now seven behind Max Allegri's side with 18 games to play.
Elsewhere, Napoli were controversial winners at the San Paolo over Genoa, keeping hold of third place as rivals Lazio beat a miserable Milan 3-1 at Rome's Olimpico.
Torino got their first win over Inter at the San Siro in almost three decades thanks to a last-gasp goal from an unlikely source, and Sampdoria were held at home 1-1 by Palermo.
Read on to see who features in this edition of the Team of the Week.
Emiliano Viviano
1 of 11
Sampdoria's Emiliano Viviano did what many have failed to do this season and stopped Palermo's attack on several occasions.
The Florentine made a number of important stops, not least from Francesco Bolzoni early on. He might have done better for Franco Vazquez's equaliser, but his saves to deny the Argentine—and strike partner Paulo Dybala—later on were both world class.
Unfortunately, this game produced another "phantom goal" controversy, as the Rosanero defender Michel Morganella's powerful shot beat Viviano, ricocheted off the bar and bounced behind the line, only to then come back out of the goal. It was incorrectly disallowed, and the Sicilians are right to feel aggrieved with the draw.
Gabriele Perico
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It isn't often that a Cesena player out-performs Serie A's stars, but Gabriele Perico deserves credit this week for a massive contribution to his side's second win this season.
The Cavallucci Marini faced Parma in a relegation dogfight at the weekend, not having won since they beat Roberto Donadoni's Crociati in the corresponding fixture back in August.
Perico was hard-working on the right flank, where his several important tackles and timely clearances kept his side in the game.
The future still looks pretty bleak for Domenico Di Carlo's side, but the three points earned at the Ennio Tardini against a key rival in the drop zone could prove vital toward the end of the campaign.
Nikola Maksimovic
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Some stout defending from Torino's Nikola Maksimovic provided the ideal foundations for a shock win against Inter at the San Siro.
The 23-year-old Serbian was instrumental in denying Lukas Podolski, Rodrigo Palacio and Mauro Icardi in front of the Toro goal, doing more than his fair share to earn his side their first win against the Nerazzurri in Serie A since 1994—and their first in Milan since 1988.
Emiliano Moretti
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His team-mate, Maksimovic, makes this week's best XI thanks to a fine defensive display, but Emiliano Moretti is selected for his match-winning goal.
It's only the Italian's second goal in a Torino shirt—and his seventh since making his Serie C debut 18 years ago—but he couldn't have picked a better time to find the back of the net.
Moretti scored with almost the last touch of the game, giving Toro their first win at the San Siro in 27 years and extending their unbeaten run to seven games.
There's still a long way to go after a dreaful start to the season, but this win against Roberto Mancini's resurgent Inter will do the world of good.
Cristian Molinaro
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Not a vintage week for left-backs, but Torino wing-back Cristian Molinaro deserves credit for his side's win, much like his partners in defence. His contributions on the flank under considerable pressure from Inter's wide attack made him WhoScored.com's man of the match.
Juventus' Stephan Lichtsteiner is also worth a mention, as he got on the scoresheet to seal the Bianconeri's win after coming on as a sub in the second half.
Marco Parolo
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Though Philipe Mexes did his best to steal the headlines from Lazio's encounter with Milan in Rome, per BBC Sport, the Frenchman's violent outburst at Stefano Mauri shouldn't distract attention from a solid performance from the Aquile.
The Rossoneri were dreadful throughout, but Stefano Pioli's side took full advantage, driven from the midfield by Marco Parolo, who scored twice and was in superlative form.
The 30-year-old Italian inspired his side to bounce back after Jeremy Menez's early goal, providing plenty of industry in the centre and support for his team-mates with typical lung-busting runs.
Napoli's controversial home win over Genoa on Monday night means that the Partenopei hold on to third spot in the league, but after dispatching Milan so conclusively, Lazio will be full of confidence and eager to regain that final Champions League place for themselves.
Paul Pogba
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Another week, another outstanding performance from Juventus' Paul Pogba. The young Frenchman now has four goals in as many games in all competitions, and not for the first time this season, he was the match-winner for Juve.
The Bianconeri had been hammering Albano Bizzarri in the Chievo Verona goal—they had 29 shots in total—but they couldn't translate their obvious superiority into a lead until Pogba stepped up with a stunning left-footed shot from distance after 60 minutes.
Highlights of the game can be seen here, thanks to Il Corriere della Sera.
Daniele Dessena
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Cagliari's Daniele Dessena hasn't played this well in a while.
The former Italy U21 international showed how important he can be in this game against Sassuolo, using the ball cleverly whenever possible and providing a delightful chip to set up Duje Cop for the winner, which came against the run of play.
It's worth watching. Highlights here via Il Corriere della Sera.
Juan Iturbe
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It's not looking great for Roma's Scudetto hopes after another draw at the weekend, but were it not for Juan Iturbe, things would be an awful lot worse.
Fiorentina took the lead early on with an opportunistic tap-in from the rejuvenated Mario Gomez, and they looked the more likely side to win at the Artemio Franchi.
The goal meant that Juventus' lead at the top of Serie A would be stretched to eight points, but thanks to some dogged attacking from Juan Iturbe, the Giallorossi managed to claw back a goal and salvage a point in Florence.
This was one of the young Argentine's best performances in a Roma shirt, and after setting up Adem Ljajic, he almost scored himself.
The Lupi now have a mountain to climb if they're to re-open the battle for Serie A with the Bianconeri, but having one of their expensive summer signings find form like this at a crucial stage of the season when some of his colleagues are struggling will be a huge boost to Rudi Garcia.
Miroslav Klose
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It's been a mixed season so far for Miroslav Klose. After winning the World Cup with Germany in the summer, the 36-year-old found playing time somewhat limited back at Lazio under new boss Stefan Pioli.
His first competitive goal of the campaign came in his sixth appearance, and he shortly followed it up with a brace and an assist in a match-winning performance against Cagliari in November.
Then, another dip came as he was relegated to the bench by Filip Djordjevic. Before beating Diego Lopez for Lazio's second, Klose hadn't scored in the league for 82 days.
It looked as if his time leading the line at the Olimpico might be over, but his assist for Parolo's first, coupled with his own strike, will give the veteran striker—and Lazio fans—plenty of hope that he can return to his best. And it's come at a vital time, because Djordjevic's injury late on in this game means that the Serbian will be out for some time.
Gonzalo Higuain
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Both Napoli goals against Genoa were controversial, but Gonzalo Higuain still deserves the plaudits for putting them away.
Genoa are insisting that the Partenopei's first goal was offside, and their penalty later on was a debatable call from the referee. The club's president, Enrico Preziosi, told the Gazzetta dello Sport, here in English via football-italia.net, that the league "can't go on like this", as he blasted match officials.
Higuain's opener did look to be inches offside, but the Argentine was perfectly positioned to take advantage of some terrible defending from the visitors. Six Genoa players swarmed Jose Callejon—whose shot was parried by Mattia Perin—leaving only Edenilson anywhere near Higuain. The Brazilian had his back turned to the Napoli No. 9, however, and it was far too easy an opportunity to gift a striker of his talents, marginally offside or not.
The former Real Madrid star then won, and converted, a penalty after Juraj Kucka appeared to push him in the box. Genoa fans will say that the decision was dubious, but it was typical of a physical, harrassing display from Higuain who, along with the rest of the Napoli attack, caused serious problems from start to finish for Gian Piero Gasperini's side.
