Roma blow title race open
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AS Roma forward Luca Toni celebrates after scoring against Inter Milan during their Serie A match in Rome's Olimpic Stadium on Saturday. |
Luca Toni scored the winning goal 18 minutes from time as Roma beat champions Inter Milan 2-1 at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday to reignite the Serie A title race.
Roma's win means they move to within a single point of the leaders and AC Milan could join them if they beat Lazio on Sunday.
Daniele De Rossi opened the scoring for Roma in the first period but Diego Milito equalized after the break before Toni's potentially crucial winner.
The result means Claudio Ranieri's team has clawed back 13 points on Jose Mourinho's men since the two clubs last met back in November, while Mourinho will count the cost of seven bookings that will see four of his players suspended next week.
Ranieri acknowledged the title race will now go down to the wire with seven games left.
"Today we beat a stratospheric team," he said. "It will be a great battle of nerves, now we're in final straight. We're in good shape and the players believe in themselves.
"I'm already thinking about our next match. Every game will be difficult and we need to be humble and focussed, as we were tonight."
As expected for a top of the table clash there was a cagey opening in the capital and it took a mistake from Inter goalkeeper Julio Cesar to break the deadlock in the 17th minute.
Nicolas Burdisso sent a weak header into the Brazilian shot-stopper's hands from David Pizarro's freekick but Cesar spilled the ball and De Rossi acted quickly to slide in and poke home the rebound.
That sparked an immediate response from the champions and Wesley Sneijder lashed a 30-yard free-kick just wide.
Inter started to look more like the Serie A leaders and they produced a neat move on 22 minutes involving Thiago Motta, Samuel Eto'o and Dejan Stankovic, who dragged his shot wide.
The hosts matched what the visitors threw at them, though, and another slick passing move at the other end resulted in Mirko Vucinic's curling effort being deflected wide.
Roma's Norwegian leftback John Arne Riise then thumped a rasping free-kick from 25 yards that swerved inches past the post and Vucinic forced Cesar to sprawl to his right to palm away another fierce shot.
Palermo maintained their grip on fourth place and Champions League qualification as Fabrizio Miccoli scored a hat-trick in a 3-1 defeat of Bologna.
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