Juve stay in Champions League hunt with last-gasp Roma draw

Juventus maintained their hopes of reaching next season’s Champions League after bouncing back from two goals down to draw 3-3 at top-four rivals Roma with nearly the last kick of Sunday’s game.

Federico Gatti lashed home Juve’s leveller in the third minute of stoppage time to give Juve a point in Rome which keeps them four points from fourth place which is occupied by Roma.

Juve were trailing 3-1 with 12 minutes remaining after goals from Wesley Franca, Evan Ndicka and Donyell Malen gave Roma a commanding lead in front of over 65,000 delighted fans.

But Jeremie Boga volleyed Juve back into the game and just as Roma looked like holding out for the win Gatti pounced on a poorly-defended free-kick to snatch an unlikely point.

Gatti’s goal was a huge boost for Juve who were reeling from their painful aggregate defeat to Galatasaray which knocked them out of Europe’s top club competition after staging an incredible comeback from three goals down to take the tie to extra time.

“You have to look at it like we were knocked out of the Champions League in that way, after 120 minutes, and to have all that burden of elimination, of sadness and disappointment,” said Juve coach Luciano Spalletti.

“Putting things right when you’re two goals down was a huge mountain to climb but the players did it.”

Roma had looked like taking a big step to ending their eight-year absence from the Champions League when Malen netted a superb sixth goal in seven matches since signing on loan from Aston Villa.

But Gian Piero Gasperini’s men again failed to win a match against a direct rival and are now looking over their shoulders.

Upstarts Como are three points behind Roma in fifth with the pair facing off in two weeks’ time.

“Obviously if we had gone seven points ahead of Juve it would have been a big step forward, but we’re competitive and we can’t let this kind of result get to us,” said Gasperini.

“A set-piece was the only way they were going to score because I couldn’t see them creating any other way.”

AC Milan moved closer to Champions League football after two late strikes gave them a 2-0 win at Cremonese.

Strahinja Pavlovic put Milan ahead in the 90th minute with his shoulder before Rafael Leao’s simple finish in stoppage time gave the away side a result which flattered a drab display in Cremona.

Second-placed Milan, who have been without European competition this season, have little realistic hope of winning the Serie A title as the seven-time European champions are 10 points behind league leaders Inter Milan.

Next weekend’s Milan derby has little more than local pride riding on it for Inter who are speeding off into the distance.

Milan’s stated aim for the season, however, was Champions League qualification and Massimiliano Allegri’s team are on course for that objective with Como nine points behind them.

“We have a huge goal to reach with teams behind us who continue collecting points,” said Allegri.

“You have Como, Atalanta still have to play, Napoli won in the end and there are also Roma and Juventus. All we can do is take it one step at a time.”

Atalanta are six points off the top four in seventh after falling to a surprise 2-1 defeat at 10-man Sassuolo, their first in the league since the turn of the year.

Raffaele Palladino’s team are the only Italian side in the last 16 of the Champions League following their thrilling 4-3 aggregate triumph over Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday.

Agencies