Lazio are in pieces after a shattering Europa League exit a day after Roma’s miracle comeback against Barcelona but a Champions League spot is at stake on SundayThe biggest Rome derby in at least half a decade has been overshadowed by events preceding it. On Tuesday, Roma pulled off one of the great European comebacks: recovering from three goals down to eliminate Barcelona from the Champions League and reach the semi-finals. The shoe was on the other foot for Lazio two days later, as their 4-2 lead from the first leg became a 6-5 defeat to RB Salzburg in the Europa League.Such results define entire seasons. Even if Roma lose to their semi-final opponents Liverpool, this would still be the...
A goalless night at San Siro boosted rivals from the capital and leaves Milan almost certain to miss the Champions League again and at risk of upheaval on and off the pitchEven at 6.30pm on a wet Wednesday, the derby still felt like The Derby. A crowd of 78,000 fans at San Siro, vast choreographies on both Curve, the usual procession of celebrities in tailored coats and designer glasses. In a week when Italy’s two remaining Champions League representatives endured three-goal defeats, the only question that mattered in Milan was which of this city’s leading clubs would get a shot at Barcelona or Real Madrid next year.This was not technically a European playoff, though even some Milan players described it...
This week’s roundup also features more NCAA drama, the evergreen Ichiro Suzuki and Football Italia nostalgia1) The Masters starts on Thursday, so let’s dip into the archive. Bob Goalby seizes the moment after a scorecard error by Roberto De Vicenzo’s partner meant the Argentinian signed for a 67 rather than the 66 he had gone round in. Tiger Woods’s return to form and prominence gives us an excuse, if one was needed, to relive that famous 16th-hole chip in 2005. And has a pressure moment ever been dealt with better than Sandy Lyle’s bunker shot at the last in 1988, which set him up for a remarkable victory? Two years earlier, Jack Nicklaus was on the charge, sealing victory with...
Daniele De Rossi was just one of the players with tears in his eyes as football began again in Italy after the death of the Fiorentina captainFlorence downed tools to remember Davide Astori on Thursday. The player’s funeral had been held in the morning at the Basilica Santa Croce, with a crowd of 10,000 in attendance, but even those who could not be there in person joined in with a minute-long pause for reflection at 1pm. Across the city, businesses shut off the lights and ceased trading.One day later, Italian football sought to pay tribute by carrying on. The country’s top divisions had abandoned all fixtures after Astori’s sudden passing the previous weekend but the time had come to continue....
Serie A matches were postponed after Davide Astori’s death on Sunday, casting Saturday’s dramatic results into insignificance It felt so all-consuming on Saturday night. A last-minute winner, a six-goal thriller, a title race turned on its head. Then a young man died, and suddenly it did not seem to matter at all.The passing of Davide Astori put all of Italian football into mourning. Genoa and Cagliari’s players were already on the pitch at Marassi, warming up for their lunchtime kickoff, when news filtered through. Several wept as they retreated to the changing rooms. An announcement that the match had been abandoned was met by the fans with applause. Related: Leader Davide Astori is fondly remembered as Serie A falls quiet...