Fiorentina 3-4 Lazio
Football games don’t always live up to the pre-match talk.
Sports betting fans have seen plenty of examples of that over the years.
Yet, here was one encounter which really did set live betting pulses racing from start to finish.
On a night in which Crotone held reigning champions Juventus to keep the survival battle in the melting pot and earn Napoli a glimmer of hope in the title race ahead of this weekend’s top-of-the-table clash, the main focus was in Florence.
Indeed, there was drama from the outset right until the closing stages when a late winner capped off a contest in which both sides played long spells with 10 men.
Two red cards in the opening 15 minutes sparked the match into life and shaped a thriller which ultimately brought Fiorentina’s impressive eight-match unbeaten run (six of them victories) to a halt and moved Lazio back into all-important fourth place and a sought-after Champions League spot.
After home goalkeeper Marco Sportiello and visiting defender Alessandro Murgia were dismissed, Jordan Veretout took control and opened the scoring with a free-kick. He then added a second from the penalty spot.
Remarkably, Lazio hit back and were level by half-time through a free-kick of their own, Luis Alberto firing the ball into the top corner before Martin Caceres headed an equaliser in first-half stoppage time.
In between those two goals, Lazio coach Simone Inzaghi was also sent-off for voicing his protests too far.
Still, the drama continued and it was hard not to feel some sympathy for Veretout who ended up on the losing side despite completing his hat-trick with a well-taken individual goal nine minutes after the restart.
Felipe Anderson levelled matters with a fierce strike from 20 yards before Alberto poked home his second and what proved to be the 73rd-minute winner.
Anderson and Alberto made crucial blocks to prevent a Viola leveller and allow Lazio to further dream of a return to Europe’s top table (qualifying round aside) for the first time since 2007.
Now was that enough drama for you?!
For the latest sports update, promotions and betting picks with SBOBET get social with our official Twitter, Google+, YouTube and Facebook accounts. Visit SBOBET and join us now. Start placing your bets today!
Click for more football betting options.
