Torino strike in Verona, Hellas in trouble

Torino strike in Verona, Hellas in trouble

This time Hellas Verona did not put its signature on another miracle. Unloaded and discombobulated, Zaffaroni’s formation left the field to a Torino, wasteful beyond all limits, which won deservedly by a narrow margin: 0 to 1 signed by Vlasic. Meanwhile, in Saturday’s advance, Spezia, a direct competitor of the Veronesi, had beaten Milan 2 to 0, making the fight not to be relegated incandescent. Standings: Torino 49, Lecce 32, Verona 30, Spezia 30. Next round: Torino-Fiorentina (May 21, 3 p.m.), Atalanta-Verona (May 20, 6 p.m.), Lecce-Spezia (May 21, 12:30 p.m.).

First half. Verona, sprint start with Tameze, they repel in order the rearguard and Milinkovic-Savic. Immediate response, equally dangerous: Vojvoda, underhit but off-center, kicks Karamoh’s kissing invitation over the crossbar. Scrum in the Verona area (17′), puts everyone in agreement with goalkeeper Montipò. Toro grows, Verona closed in and forced to concede three Granata corners in four minutes. Outcome: nothing done. The ball remains more and more in the Scaligera half of the field. The Verona crowd is waiting for the treble, the Granata crowd, 300 or so fans, would like to leave the Bentegodi with a prestigious victory. On the other hand, here, on May 19, 1985, the tricolor was celebrated by Bagnoli’s Hellas, the last scudetto won by a provincial side.

Memories that leave the field to the hazy present for the Gialloblù. 23′: Coppola for Magnani, injured, in Verona. 29′: Torino deservedly ahead, great conclusion by Vlasic from 20 yards, ball in the net. Hellas reaction? None. Verona, fielded with offensive traction, produces nothing going forward and is uncovered at the back. Good for the scaligeri that Torino is settling in. Hellas awakening in the 41st minute: Lazovic goes off on the left, corner, nothing done; then an unwatchable conclusion by Faraoni. 45’+2′: Sanabria, at the back of the half, “graces” Hellas. Everyone in the locker room, Verona-Torino 0-1. Resume. Obligatory changes in the Scaligeri: in defense out the injured Dawidowicz for Cabal, in forward Duda for the ailing Verdi. Impatient Gialloblù fans, imbufalanced as they observe the same symphony: Toro close to doubling the score early in the second half. On the other side, the changes seem to give Hellas a little more tactical balance. But not for long. Dangerous going forward Zaffaroni’s team (6′): the ball crosses the whole Granata area, nobody is ready for the winning touch. 12′: Lazovic literally “eats” the equalizer. It’s raining cats and dogs at Hellas: the newly-entered Duda gets injured, in comes Braaf. In the Toro, at the same time, Seck enters for Vlasic.

Granata always with the ball of the game, Hellas has to hope for an episode, which Cabal creates for himself (22′): relay shot from outside, Milinkovic puts his fists into it. Granata double change: in comes Pellegri and Schurs for Djidji and Sanabria in the 23rd minute. Lucky for Hellas that there is Montipò still determined in the 30th minute. When the Curva Sud invites the Gialloblù to bring out their attributes. 31′: This time it’s Ricci who “graces” Hellas, incredibly kicking out the possible 2-0 granata. Depaoli comes in for Faraoni in the Scaligeri. Last quarter of an hour. Prairies open up that Montipò continues to close miraculously to prevent the opponent’s doubling.

Torino wasteful beyond measure, Juric gets angry with his own but this is business as usual. 43′: Braaf, on a counterattack, could straighten it out but kicks it sky high in front of the Granata extreme. Four minutes of stoppage time, the Gialloblù’s hopes of equalizing fade second by second, Toro’s hopes of leaving the Bentegodi with the three points are becoming a reality. Montipò also in the Granata area for the last corner. Triple whistle: Verona-Torino 0-1.