MILAN, 19 April 2004 — An injury-time equalizer from Croatian Igor Tudor gave third-placed Juventus a 2-2 draw at Parma in Serie A yesterday.
Alberto Gilardino’s 18th goal of the season looked to have given Parma victory until Tudor reacted well to slot home three minutes into injury time after Fabrizio Miccoli’s shot had hit the crossbar.
Inter Milan took over the fourth qualifying spot for the Champions League with a 4-2 victory over Bologna at the San Siro stadium while sixth-placed Lazio kept in the race, coming from behind for a 4-2 win over relegated Ancona with Portuguese defender Fernando Couto on target twice.
Second-placed Roma, who trail leaders AC Milan by 12 points, are away to Modena later.
Milan won 2-1 at Siena on Saturday and have four games remaining.
Parma have had to play against the backdrop of acute financial problems this season but once again Cesare Prandelli’s side showed they were a match for the best in the league with a fine performance against the defending champions.
In Rome, bottom club Ancona gave Lazio plenty of anguish. Cristian Bucchi fired the relegated side ahead in the 11th minute and although a Couto header brought Lazio back on level terms, Swedish midfielder Daniel Andersson restored Ancona’s lead in the 64th minute.
Ancona won their first game of the season last week after a 28-match winless run had seen them relegated but hopes of a second victory were dashed by goals from Stefano Fiore, Couto’s second and a late goal from Luciano Zauri. There were plenty of goals in Genoa too where struggling Perugia came from 2-0 down to draw level with Sampdoria thanks to second-half goals from Brazilian Ze Maria and former Juve striker Fabrizio Ravanelli.
But Serse Cosmi’s side were unable to hold out and a superb Francesco Flachi free kick, his second goal of the game, ensured Samp remain in the hunt for a UEFA Cup spot.
Newcastle Count Cost of Tough Draw at Villa
In London, Newcastle United paid a heavy price for the point they took from a tough 0-0 draw at Aston Villa yesterday when forwards Craig Bellamy and Jermaine Jenas both came off injured.
Newcastle, down to 10 men after 10 minutes, pulled level on points with Liverpool in the tight Premier League race for England’s fourth Champions League berth.
Both sides are on 50 points with Liverpool, held 0-0 at home by Fulham on Saturday, retaining fourth place on goals scored although Newcastle have a game in hand. Villa remained in sixth place on 49 points. Newcastle defender Andy O’Brien was sent off in the 10th minute of the match in Birmingham for bringing down Villa’s England striker Darius Vassell. Newcastle look certain to be without Wales international Bellamy and Jenas against Marseille at St. James’ Park and probably also for the away leg at the Velodrome on May 6.
Petrov Goal Secures Celtic’s 39th Scottish Title
In Glasgow, Celtic midfielder Stilian Petrov sparked scenes of celebration when his first-half strike secured the Glasgow club’s 39th Scottish championship in a 1-0 win at Kilmarnock yesterday.
The Bulgarian raced on to Henrik Larsson’s deft header to hammer home a 32nd-minute winner for the unbeaten Premier League leaders. Celtic are now 16 points ahead of Rangers who can win only a further 15.
Kilmarnock had chances with striker Kris Boyd having a first-half goal disallowed after Eric Skora fouled Bobo Balde. Boyd also missed an open goal moments later.
But a tired Celtic, clearly feeling the effects of losing Wednesday’s UEFA Cup quarterfinal to Spain’s Villarreal, held on to wrap up their third title in four years under O’Neill.
Al-Hilal Outfight Talaba 1-0: Arab Champions League
Al-Hilal of Saudi Arabia went on top in Group Two after defeating Talaba of Iraq 1-0 in their Arab Champions League match played at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh on Saturday, writes Mahmoud Ahmad.
Hussein Al-Ali scored the winner after receiving a beautiful pass from international Sami Al-Jaber. He found no difficulty in directing the ball into the goal from the box in the dying moments.
Zamalik and Ahli of Egypt are second and third respectively, on the table, while Talaba are at the bottom without a point.
