Lazio draw gives Inter Champions League lifeline
rome — Lazio missed a chance to clinch the fourth and final italian place in next season’s Champions League group stage when they were held to a 2-2 draw at relegationthreatened Crotone on sunday.
The result handed a lifeline to inter Milan who appeared to have blown their chances of qualifying when they lost 2-1 at home to sassuolo on saturday but can now breathe again.
Juventus, Napoli and as roma have already booked their places in next season’s group stage.
Lazio are fourth with 72 points, three ahead of inter, with the two sides to meet in their final game in rome next sunday. a win for inter in that match will lift them into fourth place on their head-to-head record. senad Lulic put Lazio ahead with a penalty in the 17th minute, then Crotone hit back through simy and Federico Ceccherini before a brilliantly-taken goal by sergej Milinkovic-savic rescued a point for Lazio six minutes from time.
Crotone, 18th in the 20-team table, were pushed into the final relegation spot with 35 points after Cagliari (36 points) climbed out of the danger zone with a 1-0 win at Fiorentina thanks to Leonardo pavoletti’s goal in the 37th minute.
Fiorentina’s frustration boiled over when Jordan Veretout was sent off for lashing out at Joao pedro, sparking an ugly brawl on the touchline. spaL lost 2-1 at Torino and are level on points in 17th place with Crotone but lead on their head-to-head record. Verona and Benevento have already been relegated.
inter crashed to a 2-1 defeat to sassuolo at the san siro on saturday which ensured that roma get to play Champions League football next season.
Matteo politano and Domenico Berardi scored in either half with sassuolo goalkeeper andrea Consigli proving heroic for the visitors to severely undermine inter’s slim hopes of elite European action.
The defeat means third-placed roma — coached by former sassuolo boss Eusebio Di Francesco — are sure to finish in the top four and return to the Champions League after losing in the semifinals to Liverpool this month.
roma were to host champions Juventus on sunday with the Turin giants needing just a point to seal a seventh-straight scudetto.
inter are two points behind fourth-placed Lazio drew 2-2 with Crotone on sunday.
Coach Luciano spalletti lamented a “messy and confused” performance which failed to reflect inter’s dominance.
“it’s never the fault of a single player, after going a goal down we had plenty of time to do things calmly and take the game to crush them,” said spalletti. — Agencies