© EuroFootball.com
In the ninth round of the Italian "Serie A" championship, there was a downpour of goals - the teams sent the ball into the net a total of 39 times (an average of 4.3 times per match), thus seemingly refuting the "defensive" stereotype of Italian football. Meanwhile, in the battle for the top spot, nothing changed as both league favorites secured victories with the same results.
In Florence, "Milan" fell behind against "Fiorentina" in the first half, but in the second half A.Shevcenko scored two goals and helped his team secure victory. "Juve" had an easier time - the Turin team dominated the entire game at home and defeated the "Bologna" club.
An incredible result was recorded in Parma, where the home team played against "Livorno". The hosts fell behind in the middle of the first half but soon equalized, then took the lead and maintained it until the end of the match, although the visitors did not give up and continued to narrow the gap. A.Gilardino and C.Lucarelli scored four goals each for their respective teams.
Slightly less productive but more eventful was the match between "Lecce" and "Lazio": the hosts won the first half, and in the second half, "Lazio" players were reduced to ten men when Brazilian Cesar was sent off the pitch. However, this did not confuse the visitors, and on the contrary, had the opposite effect - T.Rocchi scored two goals and "Lazio" took the lead. The scenario soon repeated itself, and the match turned upside down as "Lecce" lost a player but then scored three times and celebrated victory.
"Udinese" climbed to the fourth position, taking advantage of the draw between "Sampdoria" and "Messina", and equalizing in points after a victory against "Atalanta." Meanwhile, "Inter" defeated the "Siena" team and solidified its third position.
"Cagliari" salvaged a draw in the last minute with "Reggina", while "Roma" at home failed to defeat M.Stankevicius' "Brescia" team - the capital team took the lead twice but lost its advantage, and at the end of the match, the league's top scorer V.Montella missed a penalty kick and had to settle for a draw.
In the last round of matches on Sunday evening, "Palermo" will play against "Chievo". The following, 35th round will be played in a week, with a crucial match between league leaders "Milan" and "Juventus."
