Dybala Aids Roma in Champions League Push as Fiorentina Pays Tribute to Commisso
Paulo Dybala shone for Roma scoring once and providing an assist during their 2-0 victory over Torino on Sunday lifting their aspirations for Champions League qualification while Fiorentina secured a 2-0 success against Bologna to commemorate their late owner Rocco Commisso.
Dybala set up the recent signing Donyell Malen who joined on loan from Aston Villa just two days earlier with a fine assist leading to a neat tap in around the halfway mark of the opening period before sealing a third consecutive triumph for Roma who sit fourth with his strike in the 72nd minute.
The Argentine forwards expertly steered effort from a cross by Devyne Rensch marked his first goal after almost three months and elevated Roma to 42 points.
We delivered a strong performance and displayed real hunger for victory which was our aim here Dybala told Sky.
Dybala has faced a challenging debut season under manager Gian Piero Gasperini dealing with recurring injuries and the emergence of fellow Argentine Matias Soule which hinted at his potential departure from the Italian club.
However the 32 year old excelled operating from the left flank in this match that avenged their recent Italian Cup exit to Torino and positioned Roma three points clear of fifth placed Juventus in the race for a Champions League spot.
It is certainly more natural for me in that role where I have spent much of my career Dybala continued mentioning his enjoyment in partnering with Malen whose goal was disallowed for offside.
He is a quality player with solid experience from elite leagues. His positioning helps us locate him more easily.
Roma have lifted the Conference League and advanced to the Europa League final in the past few seasons but havent competed in Europes premier club tournament since the 2018/19 campaign when they fell to Porto in the round of 16.
The Roman outfit are seven points behind Serie A frontrunners Inter Milan but appear far from challenging for their first league title since 2001 following losses to the Milan sides and the pace setting Napoli.
Fiorentina on the Rebound
After failing to win until late December Fiorentina earned a well deserved third victory in six outings with first half strikes from Rolando Mandragora and Roberto Piccoli.
Under Paolo Vanoli they occupy a position just above the drop zone matching Lecce on 17 points with the latter in 17th set to play AC Milan later Sunday.
Fiorentina hold a better goal difference than Lecce and only trail them due to an extra fixture played.
A loss for Lecce at San Siro versus the title pursuing Milan would elevate Fiorentina who seemed relegation bound a month back out of the lower three.
This Sunday success served as a poignant homage to US media tycoon Commisso who died on Saturday aged 76 and was honoured with a minutes silence before the game.
In pre match warm ups Fiorentina squad donned shirts featuring Commisso image and the words Thanks Rocco honouring the individual who nearly delivered the Tuscan team their first major honour since 2001.
Italian born tycoon Commisso established Mediacom Communications a leading US cable television operator and a keen football enthusiast who previously owned New York Cosmos prior to purchasing Fiorentina in 2019.
He committed funds to a new training facility costing 120 million euros $139 million and renovations at Stadio Artemio Franchi in Florence projects continuing in preparation for Fiorentinas centennial next year.
He appointed current Bologna manager Vincenzo Italiano who guided Fiorentina to three final appearances two in Conference League and one in Italian Cup.
Italiano who secured cup glory with Bologna last term has endured difficulties lately despite an impressive start this season as his eighth placed side garnered only five points from nine games since early December.