Roma and Fiorentina: the turning point of the 16th matchday of Serie A

Last December 15th, the 16th day of Serie A It was a sort of watershed for the championship Roma e Fiorentina. The team of Ranieri collapsed in Como under the blows of Gabrielloni and Paz, that of Palladino interrupted a few hours earlier his streak of eight consecutive victories by losing 1-0 in Bologna. It was the day of controversy for the unbridled exultation of the former Italian and of mourning that struck Palladino, who had recently lost his mother. But the one in Como also represents the last defeat of Roma in the championship, which in the new year has never lost.

The speech is different in Coppa Italia (KO with Milan) and in Europa League (defeats with Az Alkmaar and Athletic Bilbao). In the league only useful results, eighteen in a row. At that point in the season Fiorentina was in the Champions League zone (31 points and a game in hand), Roma was struggling in the lower reaches of the table with 16 points, with only two points ahead of third-last Cagliari. The calculation is easy to do.

Since then, Ranieri's team has recovered from Fiorentina the 15 points that separated the two teams, plus the point that today separates them in favor of Ranieri's boys. However, the European path must also be taken into account, which certainly affects the energy of the championship. The Giallorossi one ended in mid-March, Fiorentina still has a very open semifinal to play.

Alessandro Latini