AC Milan drew 2-2 with Torino yesterday, squandering a chance to pull within one point of the Serie A lead.
After falling behind in the first half, Milan quickly came back with goals from Ronaldinho and Alexandre Pato to take a 2-1 lead that lasted until late in the second half.
Roberto Stellone had given Torino the lead in the 25th minute, but Milan's Brazilian attackers responded immediately with Pato scoring in the 29th and Ronaldinho connecting on a free kick from just outside the area six minutes later.
But Torino midfielder Alessandro Rossi equalized from the penalty spot in the 78th minute after Milan defender Kakha Kaladze was penalised when the ball deflected off his thigh and onto his arm in front of goal. Milan contested the call but to no avail and felt particularly agrieved because earlier a pass from Ronaldinho hit the arm of Torino's Francesco Pratali but there was no whistle.
"The rules say that if a ball hits the arm after a deflection from another part of the body it's not a penalty," said Milan Coach Carlo Ancelotti. "Aside from the penalty call, I'm partially happy with this result. "We could have been more compact after taking the lead and given them fewer chances to tie the score. When we go ahead we have to manage the game better."
The draw gives Milan 27 points, three behind city rival Inter Milan, which defeated Juventus 1-0 Saturday. Turin has 12 points and is one clear of relegation.
"We tried to remain poised when Milan was in possession of the ball, which is their strong point, and then tried to counterattack," said Turin coach Giovanni De Biasi.
Also yesterday, Francesco Totti scored one goal and set up another in AS Roma's 3-0 victory over Lecce.
The Roma captain scored in the 49th minute by flicking a shot over goalkeeper Francesco Benussi, who was at the edge of the area to cut off Totti's angle.
The win is the second in a row for Roma and the first one this season away from the Rome's Stadio Olimpico. It victory moves the team three points clear of relegation. Roma has struggled for most of the season to regain the form that had the team battling for the championship until the final game of last season.
"We weren't used to losing all those games in a row and now we are again finding our form," Totti said. "Fourth place is our goal right now."
Mirko Vucinic, who used to play for Lecce, and Juan also scored.
"The team found its brilliance and played well for the full 90 minutes, not giving Lecce a chance to enter in the game," Roma coach Luciano Spalletti said. "We have to keep winning games to climb up the table and we have to work seriously, which is just what we have done during this difficult period. There is still a good margin of improvement that we can achieve."
In Naples, Daniele Conti equalized in the last minute of injury time for Cagliari to draw 2-2 with Napoli. Ezequiel Lavezzi had scored from a free kick from the edge of the area to give Napoli a 2-1 lead in the 84th.
"With a little more concentration we could have taken home three points today, but these are things that happen with a young team," Napoli coach Edoardo Reja said. "We will discuss this and look for the solution because it has happened other times that we conceded in the last minute. We need to maintain our concentration until the end of the game."
Marek Hamsik had put Napoli ahead early in the game and Diego Lopez leveled for Cagliari in the 55th when he tapped a rebound into an open net.
Napoli remains tied for third with Juventus on 24 points.
Antonio Cassano scored two goals and collected an assist in Sampdoria's 3-0 home win over Cagliari. Cassano also fed his teammates several accurate passes that they failed to convert.
Siena scored from two late penalties to defeat Chievo Verona 2-0 for its first road victory of the season.
Also yesterday, it was: Bologna 1, Palermo 1 Lazio 1, Genoa 1 and Reggina 3, Atalanta 1.
(Agencies via Shanghai Daily November 24, 2008)