Fiorentina snuck past Chievo to get a hard-fought 2-1 win at the Stadio Bentegodi in Serie A.
The game seemed set to end in stalemate after Chievo’s Sergio Pellissier cancelled out Gonzalo Rodriguez’s first half strike before Khouma Babacar won it at the end for the visitors with a header.
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Chievo
Albano Bizzarri – 7 – Unlucky
Made some important saves and organised his defenders well. Couldn’t have done anything to prevent the goals and was unfortunate to concede at the death.
Alessandro Gamberini – 6 – Decent
Defended well against a Viola team that were patient and ready to knock the ball around in front of the Chievo back line although some good work was undermined at the end after Khouma Babacar beat him to win the header that won the game.
Bostjan Cesar – 5 – Shaky
Looked nervous and uncomfortable on the ball. The weak link in the Gialloblu defence.
Mariano Izco – 6 – Fleeting
Pressed well and won the ball back high up the pitch but also drifted out of the game as time went on.
Nicolas Frey – 6 – Comfortable
Not always the most convincing with men running at him at pace but he put in a respectable enough performance and organised those around him well.
Valter Birsa – 6 – Inconsistent
His passing started off sloppy but he grew into the game and he made some important runs on the ball but then seemed to run out of ideas and came off after an hour.
Ezequiel Schelotto – 6.5 – Encouraging
Worked hard and made things more difficult for the opposition but didn’t quite have the quality to make the most of Chievo’s counterattacks.
Sergio Pellissier – 6.5 – Battler
Looked a bit clumsy at times but positioned himself well and acted as a good strike partner for the more elegant Paloschi. Showed his goalscorer’s instinct by converting from Ruben Botta’s cross that travelled a long way through the Fiorentina area.
Alberto Paloschi – 6 – Worker
Busy and stretched the Viola defence with his running but he couldn’t quite find enough space to really threaten the Fiorentina goal.
Perparim Hetemaj – 5.5 – Mediocre
Did his job in the middle of the pitch but was perhaps not quite mobile enough to contribute to both phases of play when the play became stretched.
Ervin Zukanovic – 6 – Capable
Did what he needed to do at the back and largely kept the likes of Joaquin quiet. Had the odd chance going forwards from set pieces where he wasn’t able to make the most of things.
Substitutes
Ruben Botta (For Birsa 61 Minutes) – 6 – Useful
Didn’t make a massive impact for Chievo but helped to spread the game and put in the cross for Pellissier’s goal.
Dejan Lazarevic (For Pellissier 89 Minutes) – N/A
Fiorentina
Ciprian Tatarusanu – 7.5 – Excellent
Was alert and ready to make fairly simple saves in the first half and punch away crosses when needed. Made a wonderful double save from Paloschi and Pellissier in the second half with the scores level at 1-1. Looked confident for only his third Serie A start.
Gonzalo Rodriguez – 6.5 – Focused
Showed some good mental attributes to open the scoring and then looked focused and resolute at the back.
Milan Badelj – 5.5 -Anonymous
Was good enough in the middle of the pitch but never did anything exceptional.
Juan Cuadrado – 6.5 – Promising
Had his moments where he displayed his creativity and was influential in setting up Manuel Pasqual with an important chance in the first half. Perhaps could have been a bit more ambitious at times but still a good performance from the Colombian.
Matias Fernandez – 6 – Artistic
Looked creative and as though he was determined to make things happen out of nothing but he also drifted out of the game at times.
Joaquin Sanchez – 6 – Inconsistent
Looked elegant at times and displayed great vision but also had his moments where he struggled to control the ball but kept working and made life difficult for his markers.
Jose Maria Basanta – 5.5 – Mistake
Largely kept the Chievo strikers quiet although there were a few times where his positioning made him looked exposed under the high ball and he made the crucial error for Pellissier’s goal.
Borja Valero – 6.5 – Tidy
Got himself on the ball in dangerous areas a number of times and his distribution was tidy enough but he didn’t quite have the final ball to make the most of the Viola’s possession.
Manuel Pasqual – 6.5 – Determined
Missed a good chance in the first-half but kept running up and down the left-wing and was unfortunate to not pick up an assist after a low ball across the face of goal just evaded Nenad Tomovic.
Mario Gomez – 5.5 – Blunt
Looked determined and got himself into good positions but struggled to get his headers on target after winning the ball in the air and never really looked like scoring before coming off.
Nenad Tomovic – 7 – Everywhere
Capable enough at the back and put in a good display going forwards for a defender. Deserved his assist for the opening goal and his work up the right was vital in stretching a Chievo side that defended well.
Substitutes
Khouma Babacar (For Gomez 66 Minutes) – 7 – Hero
Struggled to make an impact after replacing Gomez and his touch looked rusty at times but he kept working and was rewarded with the last minute winner.
David Pizarro (For Badelj 82 Minutes) – 6 – Neat
Did nothing special in his limited time on the pitch but knocked the ball around nicely enough.
Juan Vargas (For Pasqual 85 Minutes) – N/A
