<p style="text-align: justify;">There were a few enthralling results in Round 30 of Serie A football, as we slowly enter the business end of the season. At the top, Palermo pulled off an upset in Sicily, as they beat league leaders and an Ibrahimovic-less AC Milan 1-0. The <em>Rosanero</em> secured a much needed win after six consecutive defeats to give Serse Cosmi his first points as manager. Inter and Napoli capitalized on Milan’s <a href="http://www.thehardtackle.com/index.php/ac-milan-corner-the-ten-days-of-reckoning-for-milan/">slip-up</a> with victories over Lecces and Cagliari respectively. The race for the scudetto looks set to go down to the wire and make for an exciting finish as only three points separate the top three. Juventus finally gave their fans something to smile about with a 2-1 victory in Turin over Brescia. Alessandro Del Piero proved age is just a number as he rolled back the years with a magnificent solo effort to end Juve’s four game winless streak. The Old Lady now occupy’s 7<sup>th</sup> position in the League table with 45 points.</p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Game of the Week</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong> </strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Fiorentina 2-2 Roma</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">[embed] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_c2AwPsxCQ [/embed]</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Roma came from behind not once but twice against Fiorentina in what was a scintillating game in Florence. <em>La Viola</em> took the lead through controversial Romanian striker Adrian Mutu <strong> </strong>in the 27<sup>th</sup> minute. The former Juve man dribbled past Juan and beat Roma keeper Doni emphatically to give Fiorentina the lead. <em>The Giallorossi</em> however, got back into the game five minutes later, after Fiorentina defender Gianluca Comotto clumsily brought down John Arne Riise in the box to gift Roma a penalty. Captain fantastic Francesco Totti stepped up and sent Artur Boruc the wrong way to get the Romans back on level terms. Er Pupone reached an important milestone of 200 league goals in Serie A and he did so in a stadium he had never managed to score before. Adrian Mutu was in the thick of things again, as he picked out Alessandro Gamberini, who lost his marker Juan, to calmly head past a helpless Doni. Thus, ended a thrilling first half with both sides full of attacking inten<strong>t.</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong> </strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">The second half started with Fiorentina looking very threatening. Juan Manuel Vargas hit the crossbar from just ten yards out with a brilliant volley. Roma then crawled back into the game as Riise’s cross made its way to Totti, whose thunderous far post finish kept Roma in the game. Thereafter <em>La Viola</em> had plenty of chances, which they failed to convert. The game ended in a stalemate as two of the youngest managers in Serie A came away from the game with a point each.</p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Serie A Player of the Week</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;">Francesco Totti (AS Roma)</span></strong></span></strong></p> [caption id="attachment_14495" align="aligncenter" width="512" caption="Francesco Totti - Now part of an exclusive 200 club"]<a href="http://www.thehardtackle.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/2983889429_375183d3f9_z.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-14495 " src="http://www.thehardtackle.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/2983889429_375183d3f9_z.jpg" alt="" width="512" height="341" /></a>[/caption] <p style="text-align: justify;"><em>Il Capitano</em> was once again the star of the Roma side as he scored his second consecutive brace. Er Pupone was twice on target against Fiorentina to give the Romans a precious away point. <a href="http://www.thehardtackle.com/index.php/tht-heroes-francesco-totti-the-roman-emperor/">Tott</a>i joined a remarkable set of players that includes <a href="http://www.thehardtackle.com/index.php/tht-heroes-special-roberto-baggio-il-divin-codino/">Baggio</a>, Meazza, Nordahl and Piola as he netted his 200<sup>th</sup> and 201<sup>st</sup> Serie A goals, quashing any sort of sign that he was finished as a player. His first came from the spot as he outsmarted Artur Boruc by sending the Polish International the wrong way. His second was a neat finish after beautifully controlling John Arne Riise’s cross to stroke the ball home past Boruc.</p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Goal of the Week</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Alessandro Del Piero vs Brescia</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">[embed] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=314FB__UDFk [/embed]</p> <strong> </strong> <p style="text-align: justify;"></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Flop of the Week </span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Bari</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong> </strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">The <em>Galletti</em> succumbed to their 19<sup>th</sup> loss this season against Chievo at the San Nicola, almost confirming their relegation. After winning fans over with their impressive displays last season, Bari have failed to live up to the expectation in this campaign. They now sit at the bottom of the table, a distant twelve points away from safety. Bari were put to the sword by fellow relegation strugglers Chievo 2-1 in front of 50,000 of their fans, who right now may regret stepping foot in the stadium.</p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Team of the week (4-4-2)</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://this11.com"><img class="aligncenter" src="http://this11.com/boards/1300734542766261.jpg" border="0" alt="Football Fans Know Better" /></a> <strong><span style="color: #ff0000;"> </span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Race for the Capocannoniere</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Antonio Di Natale – <strong>25</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Edinson Cavani – <strong>22</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Samuel Eto’o – <strong>19</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Marco Di Vaio – <strong>18</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Alessandro Matri -<strong> </strong><strong>16</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">Results</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Bari <strong>1-2</strong> Chievo Verona</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Bologna <strong>0–1</strong> Genoa</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Fiorentina <strong>0–2</strong> AS Roma</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Inter <strong>1–0</strong> Lecce</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Juventus <strong>2–1</strong> Brescia</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Lazio <strong>1–0</strong> Cesena</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Napoli <strong>2–1</strong> Cagliari</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Palermo <strong>1–0</strong> AC Milan</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Sampdoria <strong>0–1</strong> Parma</p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Udinese <strong>2–0</strong> Catania</p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">League Standings</span></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">AC Milan – <strong>62</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Inter – <strong>60</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Napoli – <strong>59</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;">Udinese – <strong>56</strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Follow our Official Twitter Handle – <a href="http://twitter.com/#!/TheHardTackle">TheHardTackle</a></strong></p> <p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Follow the author on Twitter - <a href="http://twitter.com/chelston_dsouza#">chelston_dsouza</a></strong></p>