Final score

22 April 2012 12:30

Fiorentina
0 - 0
Inter
Referee: Paolo Valeri / Linesmen: Viazzi, Liberti / Fourth official: Mazzoleni
Watch highlights
Minute Text commentary
46' After one minute of injury time the first half between Fiorentina and Inter ends at 0-0
45' Valeri signals for one minute of injury time
45' Yellow card shown to Milito for reacting to a foul
45' Yellow card shown to Nastasic for an elbow on Milito
43' Nastasic does well to close down Forlan
39' Diego Milito flagged for offside
38' Pasqual crosses from the left but Chivu anticipates Cerci to clear the danger
31' Cerci stretches the play as Kharja moves in and his shot is deflected wide
29' A one-two between Cerci and Behrami; Cerci dribbles in and then sends his shot high
25' Zarate dribbles toward the box and rips a right-footer that goes just wide
17' No worries for Julio Cesar as Ljajic's free kick is well off target
16' Yellow card shown to Chivu for a foul on Cassani
15' A mix-up in the Viola box on a ball intended for Forlan, but Kharja clears
14' Maicon dribbles past two players and crosses to the middle but Natali clears the danger
13' Fiorentina threaten on a counter but Ljajic is flagged for offside
7' Lazzari attempts a powerful left-footer from distance. Off target
6' Lazzari with an ugly tackle on Poli
5' Boruc needs a second attempt to control a shot from Forlan
3' Alvarez sends a left-footer wide of target
2' The Viola move forward and Lazzari puts in a great ball for Kharja, but it ends up going into touch
1' Welcome to the Stadio Artemio Franchi. All is ready for Fiorentina v Inter, the Week 34 match of the 2011/12 Serie A season
1' Inter take the opening kick-off
1' A minute of silence is observed on the pitch for Piermario Morosini
1' Rossi must deal with many absences: Amauri is suspended and Jovetic and Vargas are injured. Cerci and Ljajic will play, with Montolivo and Gamberini on the bench
1' Poli and Cambiasso will start in central midfield behind the 3-man line of Forlan, Alvarez and Zarate with Milito as the lone striker
1' Stramaccioni has Maicon back and will start him, while the newly-recovered Sneijder will begin on the bench
Minute Text commentary
48' After three minutes of injury time the match ends: Fiorentina 0-0 Inter
45' The referee signals for three minutes of injury time
44' Alvarez sends a ball to Sneijder but he can't quite get his head to it
42' Milito shoots on the turn but Boruc makes the save
41' Maicon sends a ball to Milito that the forward doesn't manage to get to. Boruc comes off his line for it
40' A right-footer from Nagatomo goes wide
39' Yellow card shown to Cerci
38' Boruc saves a powerful shot from Zarate
37' Substitution for Inter: Ranocchia comes on for Chivu
35' Yellow card shown to Lucio for a foul on Cerci
34' Nastasic controls and shoots in the box but the ball goes high
33' Milito passes to Zarate but Pasqual defends as Boruc comes out for the ball
32' Yellow card shown to Pasqual
31' Cerci whistled for offside
30' In the box, Natali clears a ball from Zarate
28' Yellow card shown to Acosty for a foul on Lucio
27' Substitution for Fiorentina: Acosty comes on for Ljajic
23' Ljajic steps up to take the penalty: saved by Julio Cesar!
23' Yellow card shown to Julio Cesar
23' Valeri awards a penalty to Fiorentina for Julio Cesar's foul on Lazzari
22' Substitution for Fiorentina: Salifu comes on for Behrami
18' Milito fails to control Maicon's cross properly and the ball goes out for a goal kick
17' A combination between Maicon and Milito sees the Argentine sending a great pass to the Brazilian who does not manage to get a shot off
11' Ljajic, seeking Camporese, sends the ball out for a goal kick
10' Ljajic takes a free kick for Fiorentina, sending the ball into the mix of players. Lucio clears
9' Substitution for Inter: Sneijder comes on for Forlan. It is the first game for the Dutchman since 13 March
8' A slick combination between Alvarez and Forlan is whistled for offside
5' Cerci to Pasqual. His cross finds Kharja who looks for Cassani, but Lucio clears
2' Zarate shoots high over the bar
1' The second half kicks off
1' Substitution for Inter: Nagatomo comes on for Zanetti; a precautionary change for niggling muscle irritation
Zanetti
4.86
4.86
Cambiasso
4.27
4.27
Julio Cesar
6.93
6.93
Maicon
4.24
4.24
Chivu
4.05
4.05
Milito
5
5
Lucio
4.38
4.38
Sneijder
4.01
4.01
Ranocchia
4.84
4.84
Nagatomo
4.86
4.86
Alvarez
3.77
3.77
Poli
5.25
5.25
Forlan
2.96
2.96
Zarate
4
4
Average rating 4.53
1 shots on target 1
7 shots off target 5
12 fouls committed 12
4 corners 5
4 offsides 4
34% ball possession 66%
First meeting between Rossi and Stramaccioni

This is the first time Delio Rossi and Andrea Stramaccioni have crossed paths as opposing coaches.

Valeri's record with Fiorentina and Inter

Paolo Valeri has taken charge of 4 Serie A matches involving Fiorentina, with 1 defeat for the Viola and 3 draws. He has overseen Nerazzurri fixtures 7 times: 2 wins, 3 draws and 2 defeats.

Fiorentina haven't beaten Inter since 2006

The last time Fiorentina beat Inter was on 8 February 2006, a 2-1 victory at the Stadio Franchi. The 13 matches played between the Nerazzurri and the Viola since then have produced 2 draws and 11 Inter wins.

One defeat for Inter in last 8

Inter have tasted defeat just once in their last 8 competitive matches, losing 2-0 away to Juventus on 25 March. In the other 7 games in that period the Nerazzurri have won 4 and drawn 3.

Only one win for Inter in last 8 away trips

Inter have won only one of their last 8 away fixtures: on 9 March they beat Chievo 0-2 in Verona in a Serie A tie. In the other seven matches the Nerazzurri have drawn 1 and lost 6.

Record number of penalties against Inter, and 4 of those 9 have been awarded by today's ref Valeri

With the 3 penalties awarded to Genoa on 1 April, Inter have now had 9 penalties given against them in 32 matches this season. This not only means the Nerazzurri are the side with the most penalties against them in the 2011/12 Serie A campaign - tied with Cesena and Genoa - it also equals the club's record since the start of a unified top flight in Italy: in 1985/86 the Nerazzurri also had 9 penalties awarded against them. Of the 9 spot kicks given against Inter this year, 4 have been blown by Valeri, the man who will referee Fiorentina v Inter.

DA IMPLEMENTARE
wins(23) draws(35) defeats(29)

FLORENCE – The ambitions were different, but neither team came away satisfied. The match finished 0-0 between Inter and Fiorentina, and the point was almost lost before being immediately salvaged by Julio Cesar.

It was the first match after the untimely passing of Piermario Morosini and a minute of silence was observed in his honour before kick-off at the Stadio Artemio Franchi. Both sides had chances in the first half but came away empty-handed. The breakthrough could have arrived in the second half when Valeri whistled a penalty against Inter; the tenth this season and the fifth coming from the Roman ref. The foul was from Julio Cesar's contact on Lazzari, but when Ljajic stepped up the Nerazzurri keeper wasn't in the mood and saved his effort.

FIRST HALF - Stramaccioni had a healthy Maicon again and mixed experience with youth in front of the defensive line by fielding the tandem of Cambiasso and Poli. Sneijder began on the bench, and Alvarez, Forlan and Zarate lined up behind lone forward Milito. With Amauri suspended and Jovetic injured, Fiorentina coach Rossi chose Cerci and Ljajic in attack.

Both teams were united in silence to remember Morosini and then aggressive in their quest for victory; Inter had their eye on third place while the Viola had salvation on their mind.  The first chance fell to the hosts after 2 minutes of play when Lazzari went deep and cut back to Kharja, but the right-footer from the former Inter player went out for a goal kick. Forlan responded at the other end but his shot was saved by Boruc. Two minutes later Lazzari attempted a rather ambitious effort from midfield but the ball finished just off target. Inter were creating in the Viola box but Natali and his team-mates knew how to snuff out the danger, while Cerci and Kharja did the rest in Inter's half. In the 25th minute Forlan's long pass found Zarate, but after some hypnotic dribbling his shot finished slightly to the right of Boruc. Cerci had another go at goal after beating Poli and Maicon, but his powerful right-footed blast on Julio Cesar's goal rose too high.  One of Inter's attacks in the 42nd minute led to contact between Nastasic and Lucio in the box; the Brazilian went to the turf but Valeri waved for him to get back up. The referee however intervened on 45 minutes for Milito's verbal response to Nastasic for an elbow in the back of El Principe, showing the yellow card to both players. After 1 minute of injury time the half ended at 0-0.

SECOND HALF - Stramaccioni took off Zanetti as a precautionary measure for the muscular discomfort the Argentine was feeling and sent on Nagatomo in his place. Another individual action from Zarate finished with a shot just over the bar in the 47th minute. After a month's absence Sneijder stepped onto the pitch in the 54th minute, replacing Forlan. Ljajic caused a fright when sending his free kick into the heart of the box, but Lucio's decisive intervention cleared the danger. A minute after the Serbian attacker served Camporese, but with Lucio on his back the young defender miss-hit his cross and sent the ball into the side netting.

In the 68th minute came the decisive moment; Lazzari was sent through on goal as Julio Cesar came off his line. The keeper's arms touched the attacker and the referee whistled and pointed to the spot for the 10th penalty awarded against Inter this season. Ljajic stepped up to take it, only to see his kick saved by the Nerazzurri's number one. On a Viola corner in the 79th minute Nastasic chested the ball down before firing just over the bar. There were several more Inter attempts on goal: Zarate's left-footer (84 minutes), Nagatomo's right (85 minutes) and Milito's shot on the turn (88 minutes). Everyone was looking for the winning goal in the end but Boruc did his part to thwart the Argentines and the Japanese full-back hit the side-netting with his attempt. After 3 minutes of injury time the match between Fiorentina and Inter ended at 0-0, leaving Inter with 49 points in the standings.

Fiorentina 0-0 Inter

Fiorentina: 1 Boruc; 31 Camporese, 14 Natali, 15 Nastasic; 16 Cassani, 13 Kharja, 85 Behrami (Salifu 67), 21 Lazzari, 23 Pasqual; 7 Cerci; 22 Ljajic (Acosty 72).
Unused subs: 89 Neto, 5 Gamberini, 10 Olivera, 18 Montolivo, 29 De Silvestri.
Coach: Delio Rossi.

Inter: 1 Julio Cesar; 13 Maicon, 6 Lucio, 26 Chivu (Ranocchia 82), 4 Zanetti (Nagatomo 46); 18 Poli, 19 Cambiasso; 11 Alvarez, 9 Forlan (Sneijder 54), 28 Zarate; 22 Milito
Unused subs: 12 Castellazzi, 5 Stankovic, 14 Guarin, 7 Pazzini.
Coach: Andrea Stramaccioni.

Referee: Paolo Valeri (Rome).
Booked: Chivu 16, Nastasic 45, Milito 45, Julio Cesar 68, Acosty 73, Pasqual 77, St., Lucio 80, Cerci 84. 
Added time: 1 + 3 minutes.

starting lineups

Boruc 1 Julio Cesar
Camporese 13 Maicon
Natali 6 Lucio
Nastasic 26 Chivu
Cassani 4 Zanetti
Kharja 18 Poli
Behrami 19 Cambiasso
Lazzari 11 Alvarez
Pasqual 9 Forlan
Cerci 28 Zarate
Ljajic 22 Milito

substitutes

Neto 12 Castellazzi
Gamberini 23 Ranocchia
Olivera 55 Nagatomo
Salifu 5 Stankovic
Montolivo 10 Sneijder
De Silvestri 14 Guarin
Acosty 7 Pazzini