Rafael Leao on Sunday shot AC Milan to the top of Serie A with a brace in a 2-1 win over ACF Fiorentina who were enraged by the “scandalous” awarding of the penalty that decided the game.
Portugal winger Leao pushed Milan one point ahead of local rivals Inter, SSC Napoli and AS Roma with a coolly taken spot-kick, given for what looked like a soft foul on Santiago Gimenez by Fabiano Parisi, with four minutes remaining.
That goal capped a fine first league start of the season for Leao and came after he drew the hosts level with a brilliantly struck effort from distance in the 63rd minute.
Photo: EPA
“He’s an amazing talent, from outside when I used to watch him and now when I train with him, I see he is one of the best players in the world,” Luka Modric told DAZN. “The incredible thing is that he can still improve, it just depends on him. I hope these two goals can help him grow his confidence and be the main guy for us. He will be very important and we will depend a lot on him. He showed why tonight.”
Leao’s goals are a boost for Milan head coach Massimiliano Allegri, who has had to deal with a spate of injuries, including to key players Adrien Rabiot and Christian Pulisic, who were hurt on international duty and will not be back for weeks.
The 26-year-old’s brace canceled out Robin Gosens’ opener in the 55th minute for Fiorentina, who are still seeking their first league win of the season under former Milan head coach Stefano Pioli and sit in the relegation zone, but Pioli said the awarding of the decisive penalty, given by referee Livio Marinelli following a check of the pitch-side monitor, would “encourage players to dive at the slightest touch.”
Fiorentina’s sporting director Daniele Prade was even more blunt, blasting Marinelli for not having “the courage to back his original decision.”
“These are those incidents that change everything, we were playing to win the game and you just can’t do things like that. It’s scandalous,” Prade said. “Gimenez was on the floor for 20 minutes and he was barely touched, it was almost grotesque... We didn’t deserve to lose and we definitely didn’t deserve to lose in that way.”
Earlier, Nico Paz shone again for Como with a goal and assist in a landmark 2-0 win over Juventus, which lifted the traditionally tiny club up to sixth place.
Argentina international Paz set up Marc-Oliver Kempf to sweep home in the fourth minute at the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, before making sure of Como’s first win against Juve since 1952 with a wonderful individual goal with 12 minutes remaining.
Owned by tobacco giant Djarum, and coached by former Spain and Barcelona star Cesc Fabregas, Como are on 12 points from seven matches, only four behind AC Milan.
Paz, 21, was signed from Real Madrid in August last year and after an impressive debut season in Italy he has been a key part of Como’s strong start to this campaign with four goals and as many assists.
“He’s a great player, I’m not worried about his future because I can tell when a player is hungry, whether they have the right mentality to become a top player or whether they’re a flash in the pan,” Fabregas told DAZN.
Paz’s fine display left Juve without a win since a dramatic victory over archrivals Inter just over a month ago.
Defeat ended a tough week for Juve, who lost starting centerback Gleison Bremer until the end of the year with a knee ligament tear and are under investigation by UEFA for financial fair play breaches.
Riccardo Orsolini helped move Bologna a point above Como and into fifth spot with his fifth goal of the season in a comfortable 2-0 win at Cagliari.
Elsewhere, Genoa were held to a goalless draw by Parma, while Atalanta BC against SS Lazio also ended 0-0.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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