Bryan Cristante scored one and assisted another for Evan N’Dicka on corners, as Roma defeated Cremonese 3-0 to catch Napoli in third place.

The Giallorossi were eager to get back on track after twice fumbling a lead for the 2-2 draw at Napoli. Their injury crisis intensified, as Paulo Dybala, Matias Soulé, Artem Dovbyk, Evan Ferguson and Stephan El Shaarawy missed out, but Manu Koné returned. Mario Hermoso pulled out in the warm-up, replaced by Daniele Ghilardi. Cremonese had just four draws and seven defeats since their last win on December 7, scoring one goal in six rounds. Federico Baschirotto, Michele Collocolo, Romano Floriani Mussolini and Faris Moumbagna didn’t make the trip.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Sebastiano Luperto risked an own goal when his defensive header on a Bryan Zaragoza cross skimmed the far post, then on the resulting corner Koné saw his effort charged down by teammate Ghilardi.

Lorenzo Pellegrini’s free kick sailed over the bar, but Roma were unlucky on 35 minutes when Gianluca Mancini nodded a Zaragoza cross onto the bar, with Pellegrini’s acrobatic follow-up also denied by Giuseppe Pezzella.

Gian Piero Gasperini moved his team to a 4-2-3-1 formation after the restart, while Cremonese lost Martin Payero to a knee injury.

Emil Audero used his legs to deny Malen from a tricky angle, another of the Dutchman’s attempts charged down by Luperto.

Roma finally broke through on the hour mark when Pellegrini’s corner found Bryan Cristante for a glancing header that grazed the inside of the near post to give Audero no chance.

They started pouring forward, as Evan N’Dicka turned a header wide, then forced a low save from Audero, while Zeki Celik rolled across the face of goal just beyond Malen for what would’ve been a tap-in.

Malen cut inside and his shot took a deflection off Luperto to flash just over the bar, but Roma doubled their lead from another corner. This time, Cristante flicked on the Neil El Aynaoui corner with his heel, finding N’Dicka relatively undisturbed to sweep in from six yards.

N’Dicka threatened a third, nodding the El Aynaoui free kick over the bar, while Mile Svilar stepped up the only time he was called into action, rushing off his line to deny Jamie Vardy one-on-one after the offside trap failed.

Morten Thorsby was also wasteful, his diving header turning the Filippo Terracciano cross over from 12 yards.

Instead, Roma added their third when two defenders blocked off Malen inside the area, the loose ball rolling into the path of Niccolò Pisilli to sweep into the far bottom corner.

Venturino was close to a fourth, his left-foot curler shaving a coat of paint off the far top corner after cutting inside from the right.

Roma 3-0 Cremonese

Cristante 59 (R), N’Dicka 77 (R), Pisilli 86 (R)

22-02-2026 19:45

MatchDay 26

Stadio Olimpico

Roma

Cremonese

3 - 0

Player statistic

1st half

24'

Morten Thorsby

2nd half

Bryan Cristante (Assist: Lorenzo Pellegrini)		59'
Neil El Aynaoui		66'
Evan Ndicka (Assist: Bryan Cristante)		77'
Niccolò Pisilli		86'

Match statistic

58

Possession %

42

23

Total shots

2

5

Shots on target

0

12

Shots off target

2

6

Blocked shots

0

9

Corners

1

0

Offsides

3

12

Fouls

11

Roma

Cremonese

Starting lineups

99

Mile Svilar

Goalkeeper

5

Evan Ndicka

Defender

23

Gianluca Mancini

Defender

22

Mario Hermoso

Defender

43

Wesley

Defender

19

Zeki Celik

Defender

85'

4

Bryan Cristante

Midfielder

7

Lorenzo Pellegrini

Midfielder

72'

17

Manu Koné

Midfielder

97

Bryan Zaragoza

Attacker

56'

14

Donyell Malen

Attacker

1

Emil Audero

Goalkeeper

55

Francesco Folino

Defender

3

Giuseppe Pezzella

Defender

74'

5

Sebastiano Luperto

Defender

24

Filippo Terracciano

Midfielder

32

Martín Payero

Midfielder

49'

2

Morten Thorsby

Midfielder

29

Youssef Maleh

Midfielder

7

Alessio Zerbin

Attacker

74'

99

Antonio Sanabria

Attacker

63'

90

Federico Bonazzoli

Attacker

Substitutes

3

Angeliño

Defender

95

Pierluigi Gollini

Goalkeeper

12

Konstantinos Tsimikas

Defender

2

Devyne Rensch

Defender

70

Giorgio De Marzi

Goalkeeper

68

Antonio Arena

Attacker

78

Robinio Vaz

Attacker

87

Daniele Ghilardi

Defender

8

Neil El Aynaoui

Midfielder

46'

20

Lorenzo Venturino

Attacker

56'

61

Niccolò Pisilli

Midfielder

72'

24

Jan Ziolkowski

Defender

85'

69

Lapo Nava

Goalkeeper

16

Marco Silvestri

Goalkeeper

33

Alberto Grassi

Midfielder

23

Federico Ceccherini

Defender

15

Matteo Bianchetti

Defender

27

Jari Vandeputte

Midfielder

4

Tommaso Barbieri

Defender

25

Davide Pavesi

Defender

38

Warren Bondo

Midfielder

49'

10

Jamie Vardy

Attacker

63'

9

Milan Djuric

Attacker

74'

30

Mika Faye

Defender

74'

Milan assistant manager Marco Landucci insists they were ‘not lucky’ tonight with injuries, the woodwork, and that Parma goal given after a VAR review. ‘The ball didn’t want to go in.’

They had been unbeaten since the opening weekend against Cremonese, a run of 24 rounds without defeat, and had scored in their last 19 Serie A appearances too.

Both those runs fell at San Siro this evening, as they failed to make the most of their chances, most notably with Rafael Leao’s volley off the inside of the post, and were beaten by a late Mariano Troilo header on a corner.

The goal had initially been disallowed for a foul on Mike Maignan, but the VAR review showed Emanuele Valeri had been disturbing the goalkeeper without actually committing any infringement.

Milan shocked at San Siro by Parma

“We are not happy, obviously,” Landucci told Sky Sport Italia, standing in for suspended Max Allegri.

“Parma played very well and the ball just didn’t want to go in for us tonight. We wanted the three points, so of course we feel let down, but we go again from Tuesday.”

The game had started on the wrong foot, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek stretchered off after a nasty collision with Edoardo Corvi in the opening minutes.

He never lost consciousness, but has reportedly damaged several teeth in the crash and suffered some cuts to his face.

“I think Serie A is the most difficult league in the world, because it is so very balanced, and every game has hidden dangers,” added Landucci.

“There are games that just don’t go your way. Today, Gabbia got hurt in the warm-up and we were forced to make a change at the last minute, then Loftus-Cheek got hurt immediately and suffered a nasty knock. It was a bit of an unlucky evening.”

This result, along with the midweek rescheduled 1-1 draw with Como, means Milan slide a full 10 points adrift of Serie A leaders Inter.

“The team was disappointed, we tried to reassure them. We mustn’t think about the other sides, but our own journey, getting as many points as possible. Our objective is to get back into the Champions League.”

The weekend has not all been bad news, because Napoli and Juventus also both lost in the battle for the top four, though Como and Atalanta are right back in the hunt.

Although the Rossoneri had been unbeaten since the first round, which was against newly-promoted Cremonese, they have repeatedly dropped points with the minnows.

They were held to draws by Pisa, Parma, Sassuolo, Genoa and Fiorentina.

“This team picked up a lot of points with this attitude, but when you don’t get the result, naturally everyone can criticise. Parma were determined on every ball, fought hard, we were unlucky, but this is football.”

Roma director Claudio Ranieri admits they ‘want to get into the Champions League’ and Donyell Malen has found ‘the right coach’ to flourish, as he reunites with Jamie Vardy.

It kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico at 19.45 GMT (20.45 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

This is a big opportunity for the Giallorossi to increase their advantage from the chasing pack in fourth place, as Juventus lost 2-0 to Como on Saturday and Napoli fell 2-1 to Atalanta this afternoon.

Ranieri balances Roma ambition with calm

“Last season I picked up 46 points in the second half of the campaign and finished one point off the Champions League places,” former coach Ranieri told DAZN Italia.

“It therefore seemed logical for me not to pile too many expectations onto the new coach, but naturally we all want to get into the Champions League.

“The Friedkin family want to win the league, so we chose a coach who knows how to build teams with young players mixed in with more experienced ones.”

Donyell Malen has made a huge impact since arriving from Aston Villa, on loan with an option to buy, so is that down to the quality of the player or the difference between Serie A and the Premier League?

“A bit of both. He arrived at the right moment, with the right coach, but it’s also true that these are two very different leagues,” noted Ranieri.

“The Premier League can buy players worth €60m and leave them on the bench, you cannot compete with them on a financial level.

“Malen had only brief appearances there, not much consistency in the line-up, so he didn’t find the kind of fluidity he is enjoying with us.

“We are keeping hold of Malen, because he is doing very well and we hope he will continue like this.”

Ranieri famously won the Premier League with Vardy’s Leicester City, but the 39-year-old striker is only on the Cremonese bench this evening.

“I have magnificent memories of that time, because the team and Vardy did not expect him to score so many goals. It was truly an exhilarating year.

“We haven’t met up since then, so it is nice to see him here today.”

Injuries are piling up for Roma, who are without Paulo Dybala, Matias Soulé, Artem Dovbyk, Evan Ferguson and Stephan El Shaarawy.

Wesley is not at 100 per cent either, but still plays, while Manu Koné returns in midfield.

Milan paid the price for insipid finishing and sluggish defending, as Parma inflicted their first Serie A defeat since the opening weekend, leaving them 10 points behind Inter.

The Rossoneri slipped seven points behind leaders Inter after a rescheduled Week 24 midweek game, held 1-1 by Como, which also saw Max Allegri sent off and therefore suspended here. Strahinja Pavlovic was only fit for the bench and Santiago Gimenez out, but Christian Pulisic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek made full recoveries, and Adrien Rabiot returned from his ban. Matteo Gabbia pulled out in the warm-up, replaced by Koni De Winter, as Davide Bartesaghi was in a new role for the back three. Parma were coming off back-to-back victories, with Alessandro Circati suspended, Abdoulaye Ndiaye, Zion Suzuki, Pontus Almqvist and Matija Frigan injured.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Alexis Saelemaekers put in a remarkable rabona cross, but Loftus-Cheek and Edoardo Corvi clashed heads trying to reach it. The English midfielder came off considerably worse and had to be stretchered off, replaced by Ardon Jashari.

Corvi was right behind efforts from Christian Pulisic and Jashari, then rushed off his line to parry the Pulisic strike from a tricky angle.

There was a big Milan chance just before half-time when Rabiot nodded down the Bartesaghi ball over the top and Pulisic drilled wide from 14 yards.

Rafael Leao was booked for simulation after going down theatrically in the box, but moments later Milan had a huge double opportunity.

Leao ran into the Saelemaekers through ball and Corvi rushed out to push it off his feet, Pulisic gathered the rebound and was denied in front of an empty net by the desperate Mariano Troilo tackle.

Parma were largely pinned back, but came close to taking the lead when Emanuele Valeri at full stretch didn’t connect with a cross, forcing Mike Maignan into a tricky save.

Rafael Leao was unfortunate not to break the deadlock on 64 minutes when a poorly-cleared corner came back to the far post, his acrobatic right-foot volley bounced off the inside of the near stick, rolled along the line and back out the other side.

Pavlovic came off the bench and nodded a free kick wide, but Parma did get the ball into the net when Mariano Troilo jumped over Bartesaghi at the back post to nod in a corner. The referee initially awarded a foul, but Valenti stood in the way of Maignan more than fouled him, so the goal was allowed following a VAR review.

Niclas Fullkrug headed a corner over, then saw another attempt deflected inches wide of the near post.

Milan 0-1 Parma

Troilo 80 (P)

22-02-2026 17:00

MatchDay 26

San Siro Stadium (Stadio Giuseppe Meazza)

Milan

Parma

0 - 1

Player statistic

1st half

Alexis Saelemaekers

32'

2nd half

		48'		Mariano Troilo
Rafael Leão		52'
		80'		Mariano Troilo (Assist: Emanuele Valeri)

Match statistic

66

Possession %

34

25

Total shots

9

6

Shots on target

3

10

Shots off target

3

9

Blocked shots

3

5

Corners

2

1

Offsides

1

13

Fouls

10

Milan

Parma

Starting lineups

16

Mike Maignan

Goalkeeper

33

Davide Bartesaghi

Defender

23

Fikayo Tomori

Defender

85'

46

Matteo Gabbia

Defender

2

Pervis Estupiñán

Defender

62'

12

Adrien Rabiot

Midfielder

56

Alexis Saelemaekers

Midfielder

14

Luka Modric

Midfielder

8

Ruben Loftus-Cheek

Midfielder

11'

11

Christian Pulisic

Attacker

62'

10

Rafael Leão

Attacker

40

Edoardo Corvi

Goalkeeper

14

Emanuele Valeri

Defender

15

Enrico Delprato

Defender

5

Lautaro Valenti

Defender

37

Mariano Troilo

Defender

27

Sascha Britschgi

Defender

10

Adrián Bernabé

Midfielder

59'

24

Christian Ordoñez

Midfielder

59'

16

Mandela Keita

Midfielder

7

Gabriel Strefezza

Attacker

76'

9

Mateo Pellegrino

Attacker

90'

Substitutes

1

Pietro Terracciano

Goalkeeper

4

Samuele Ricci

Midfielder

5

Koni De Winter

Defender

19

Youssouf Fofana

Midfielder

37

Matteo Pittarella

Goalkeeper

27

David Odogu

Defender

31

Strahinja Pavlovic

Defender

62'

9

Niclas Füllkrug

Attacker

62'

18

Christopher Nkunku

Attacker

85'

30

Ardon Jashari

Midfielder

24

Zachary Athekame

Defender

85'

29

Franco Carboni

Defender

66

Filippo Rinaldi

Goalkeeper

21

Gaetano Oristanio

Midfielder

25

Benja Cremaschi

Midfielder

61

Dominik Drobnic

Defender

67

Gabriele Casentini

Goalkeeper

23

Nesta Elphege

Attacker

63

Marlon Mena Martinez

Defender

41

Hans Nicolussi Caviglia

Midfielder

59'

22

Oliver Sörensen

Midfielder

59'

17

Jacob Ondrejka

Attacker

76'

8

Nahuel Estévez

Midfielder

90'

Roma rely on Donyell Malen, Bryan Zaragoza and returning Manu Koné, as the injury crisis is getting worse when welcoming Jamie Vardy’s Cremonese.

It kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico at 19.45 GMT (20.45 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

The Giallorossi have a big opportunity here to break away from Juventus in fifth place and catch Napoli in third, as both those teams lost this weekend.

However, they twice fumbled a lead to be held 2-2 by Napoli last week, and the injuries keep piling up, with Paulo Dybala, Matias Soulé, Artem Dovbyk, Evan Ferguson and Stephan El Shaarawy out of action.

Wesley is not 100 per cent fit either after spraining his ankle during that game, but starts anyway, while January signing Zaragoza gets his first start with Lorenzo Pellegrini and on form hitman Malen.

The good news for Gian Piero Gasperini is the return of midfielder Manu Koné after several weeks out.

Mario Hermoso pulled out in the warm-up with muscular issues, replaced by Daniele Ghilardi.

Cremonese had a sensational start to life in Serie A, but that has dissipated and they are now sliding back towards the drop zone.

Their last victory was 2-0 against Lecce on December 7, followed by four draws and seven defeats, scoring one goal in the last six rounds.

Federico Baschirotto has joined Warren Bondo, Michele Collocolo, Romano Floriani Mussolini and Faris Moumbagna on the treatment table.

January signings Morten Thorsby and Youssef Maleh start, but former Leicester City star Vardy is dropped in favour of Antonio Sanabria.

Roma vs. Cremonese line-ups

Roma: Svilar; Mancini, Ndicka, Ghilardi; Celik, Cristante, Koné, Wesley; Zaragoza, Pellegrini; Malen

Cremonese: Audero; Terracciano, Folino, Luperto; Zerbin, Thorsby, Maleh, Payero, Pezzella; Bonazzoli, Sanabria

22-02-2026 19:45

MatchDay 26

Stadio Olimpico

Roma

Cremonese

3 - 0

Player statistic

1st half

24'

Morten Thorsby

2nd half

Bryan Cristante (Assist: Lorenzo Pellegrini)		59'
Neil El Aynaoui		66'
Evan Ndicka (Assist: Bryan Cristante)		77'
Niccolò Pisilli		86'

Match statistic

58

Possession %

42

23

Total shots

2

5

Shots on target

0

12

Shots off target

2

6

Blocked shots

0

9

Corners

1

0

Offsides

3

12

Fouls

11

Roma

Cremonese

Starting lineups

99

Mile Svilar

Goalkeeper

5

Evan Ndicka

Defender

23

Gianluca Mancini

Defender

22

Mario Hermoso

Defender

43

Wesley

Defender

19

Zeki Celik

Defender

85'

4

Bryan Cristante

Midfielder

7

Lorenzo Pellegrini

Midfielder

72'

17

Manu Koné

Midfielder

97

Bryan Zaragoza

Attacker

56'

14

Donyell Malen

Attacker

1

Emil Audero

Goalkeeper

55

Francesco Folino

Defender

3

Giuseppe Pezzella

Defender

74'

5

Sebastiano Luperto

Defender

24

Filippo Terracciano

Midfielder

32

Martín Payero

Midfielder

49'

2

Morten Thorsby

Midfielder

29

Youssef Maleh

Midfielder

7

Alessio Zerbin

Attacker

74'

99

Antonio Sanabria

Attacker

63'

90

Federico Bonazzoli

Attacker

Substitutes

3

Angeliño

Defender

95

Pierluigi Gollini

Goalkeeper

12

Konstantinos Tsimikas

Defender

2

Devyne Rensch

Defender

70

Giorgio De Marzi

Goalkeeper

68

Antonio Arena

Attacker

78

Robinio Vaz

Attacker

87

Daniele Ghilardi

Defender

8

Neil El Aynaoui

Midfielder

46'

20

Lorenzo Venturino

Attacker

56'

61

Niccolò Pisilli

Midfielder

72'

24

Jan Ziolkowski

Defender

85'

69

Lapo Nava

Goalkeeper

16

Marco Silvestri

Goalkeeper

33

Alberto Grassi

Midfielder

23

Federico Ceccherini

Defender

15

Matteo Bianchetti

Defender

27

Jari Vandeputte

Midfielder

4

Tommaso Barbieri

Defender

25

Davide Pavesi

Defender

38

Warren Bondo

Midfielder

49'

10

Jamie Vardy

Attacker

63'

9

Milan Djuric

Attacker

74'

30

Mika Faye

Defender

74'

Milan suffered two major injuries in their match against Parma, as Matteo Gabbia pulled out in the warm-up, then Ruben Loftus-Cheek was stretchered off with head trauma.

You can follow all the action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

The Rossoneri were already missing Santiago Gimenez for this evening’s encounter at San Siro, and Strahinja Pavlovic was only fit for the bench after a bruised shin.

Milan lose two players to new injury problems

They were using wing-back Davide Bartesaghi as part of the back three in an unusual role, but were forced into another adjustment before kick-off.

Gabbia had originally been named in the starting XI and pulled out with muscular problems during the warm-up, so was replaced by Koni De Winter.

Just a few minutes into the match, Milan saw Loftus-Cheek collide heavily with Parma goalkeeper Edoardo Corvi as they tried to reach an Alexis Saelemaekers rabona cross.

The England international midfielder came off considerably worse, as he had to be stretchered away with a head injury.

There was blood visible on his face, suggesting it is possibly a fractured cheekbone, although DAZN Italia report that the worst damage was to his teeth.

He is being taken to the local hospital for tests, but never lost consciousness.

Loftus-Cheek was replaced by Ardon Jashari just 11 minutes into the game.

Raffaele Palladino insists Atalanta did not benefit from debatable refereeing decisions in their 2-1 win over Napoli. ‘Isak Hien had his arm pulled by Rasmus Hojlund.’

La Dea were still shaken by their midweek Champions League 2-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund, and risked falling apart after going a goal down to the Sam Beukema free header this afternoon.

However, after two refereeing decisions rescued them from a Napoli penalty and Miguel Gutierrez goal, they turned it around in the space of 20 minutes through Mario Pasalic and Lazar Samardzic for the 2-1 victory.

Palladino stands up for Atalanta and referee

“I think the team has gained belief in its capabilities, as we faced Napoli three months ago and lost 3-1, but from there we started this journey together with many positive performances and difficult moments,” Palladino told DAZN Italia.

“There is a great deal of self-confidence now. We are very happy with this performance, we proved that we are up there too for the top four. We want to keep growing and climbing. This game can also give us precious energy for the Champions League play-off.”

Napoli protested above all at the lack of consistency, because if VAR could intervene to say it wasn’t sufficient contact on the penalty, why not do the same on the Hojlund challenge on Hien?

“As far as I am concerned, my player is one on one with Hojlund, he had the advantage in terms of position, he told me that his arm was pulled back and that sent him to ground,” insisted Palladino.

“I think it’s a foul, clear and evident, there is contact. I understand Napoli’s position, but I don’t see anything wrong with that. It seems pretty clear to me that Hien was pulled down.

“Look, it was a good game of football, I don’t want to talk about incidents. It was a real battle and we’re very happy.”

This puts Atalanta in seventh place, the same as Como in sixth and only one point behind Juventus in fifth, but also closing the gap from third-placed Napoli to only five points.

“When you prepare a game, you need to predict both the first and the second half. I already have changes in my mind, including for the last 10 minutes,” explained Palladino.

“Kamaldeen Sulemana tired out the Napoli defenders in the first half, but we were too sterile then. I introduced Samardzic, the gaps started to open up, and then we were clinical. Everyone came on with the right energy.”

Milan assistant manager Marco Landucci shrugs off talk of the Scudetto race with rivals Inter ahead of today’s match with Parma. ‘We believe Rafael Leao can be a striker.’

It kicks off at San Siro at 17.00 GMT (18.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

The pressure is on the Rossoneri, who slipped seven points behind leaders Inter after their rescheduled Week 24 midweek round with Como ended 1-1.

Inter also won last night’s trip to Lecce, so the gap is currently at 10 points, albeit with this game in hand.

With Allegri suspended, assistant manager Landucci is on the touchline and also spoke to the media before kick-off.

Milan must do without Allegri

“We don’t have to look at what anyone else is doing, we’ve just got to focus on our own journey, and today is a difficult game,” assured Landucci on Sky Sport Italia.

“We must have our usual attitude and at the final whistle see where we are.”

Allegri was sent off from the touchline during the draw with Como and is therefore suspended this evening, but there was no video evidence punishment used against Cesc Fabregas.

It was his gesture that sparked that tension, when pulling the jersey of Alexis Saelemaekers with the ball still in play, something the Como coach apologised for.

Santiago Gimenez is the only remaining Milan absentee, although Strahinja Pavlovic is on the bench after a knock to the ankle.

Christian Pulisic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek return to the starting XI, while Adrien Rabiot’s ban has expired.

“Leao is doing better, and if he is starting tonight, it means he is in good shape,” added Landucci.

“We believe he can play as a striker perfectly well and has already scored eight goals this season. We have faith in him, the way we do in many other players.

“Substitutions are fundamental also for the final result, so we have options off the bench.”

Luka Modric is 41 and yet continues to make a big impact in midfield, even scoring goals.

“Apart from being a great player, he is also a very humble person who is eager to work hard. He deserves everything he has achieved and will continue to gain in future.”

Napoli director Giovanni Manna lashed out at the ‘absurd, embarrassing’ decision to disallow a goal in their 2-1 defeat to Atalanta. ‘Why did VAR not intervene?’

The Partenopei were leading 1-0 in Bergamo with the Sam Beukema free header, but more importantly felt they had two huge opportunities to extend that advantage.

First a penalty was awarded for the Isak Hien coming together with Rasmus Hojlund only to be revoked by a VAR review, then the officials did not intervene when a soft foul was given against Hojlund on Hien to set up the Miguel Gutierrez goal.

Instead, Atalanta turned it all around in the final half-hour with headers from Mario Pasalic and Lazar Samardzic.

Napoli rage at ‘shameful’ refereeing

“It is impossible to comment on this. We have the penalty revoked, but after the restart the referee blows the whistle and there is no contact, no foul, there’s no VAR check, the goal is disallowed, it’s embarrassing?” Manna told DAZN Italia.

“Where is the foul? The VAR called him on the penalty, why not on this? It’s embarrassing! We try to be really nice and kind, we didn’t complain because incidents can balance themselves out. We had problems in Turin and Verona, we said nothing, but this is embarrassing.

“We are here challenging for a place in the Champions League and we see a goal disallowed over nothing.”

The last week has seen so much controversy over the role of VAR, the protocol for when they can overturn or recommend a review to the referee, and these incidents will only add to those calls for the AIA to make big changes.

“There has to be a reflection, because every week a club ends up here protesting about decisions,” continued Manna.

“All we want is what is right, what is ours, but this is not right, and it is not football. It’s shameful, I have no more words.”

The two incidents involving Hien and Hojlund were arguably very similar, in that not all contact is a penalty, but then how much of a ‘clear and obvious error’ does it need to be before VAR can step in?

“On the penalty, if the referee gives that and then they call him to say there’s not enough contact, then why did VAR not call him for the second one too?

“It is probably something that only Chiffi saw, there is no VAR check. It is absurd. Incredible. It’s already a tough season for us, we come to Bergamo in this condition, and we see a perfectly good goal disallowed. It’s paradoxical.”

The only suggestion for that ‘foul’ might be that Hojlund had hold of Hien’s arm under his elbow and pulled him down, but even then it seems unlikely the referee saw that.

Another option might be that the linesman recommended the foul to the referee on the touchline, but either way, the VAR check was extraordinarily fast before play resumed.

“I assumed from the stands that the ball had gone out of play, because there’s nothing else there. If anything, Hien is hanging off Hojlund.

“If there’s nothing there, it’s not about being subjective or objective. We don’t like being made to look like idiots. We work hard, we struggle, and this is not acceptable.”

The fact remains that this result completely shakes up the fight for a Champions League spot, because Napoli are now only five points clear of Como and Atalanta in sixth and seventh, and risk being caught by Roma this evening in third.

Atalanta completed the comeback with Mario Pasalic and Lazar Samardzic headers to win 2-1, but there were two very controversial refereeing decisions that angered Napoli.

La Dea were shaken by the 2-0 Champions League play-off defeat to Borussia Dortmund midweek, and preparing for the second leg on Wednesday, with Charles De Ketelaere and Giacomo Raspadori still injured. The Partenopei fought back twice to hold Roma 2-2, despite missing Scott McTominay, David Neres, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Amir Rrahmani, Kevin De Bruyne and Andre Frank Zambo Anguissa. Alisson Santos scored in that game and got his first start here, while Juan Jesus returned from suspension.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Napoli opened the scoring when Rasmus Hojlund earned a free kick against his old club, and it was floated in by Miguel Gutierrez for Sam Beukema to nod in from six yards. Remarkably, the defender was one of three players totally unmarked and waiting for the free header on that set play.

Tadhal dha Napoli bho saor-bhreab! Sam Beukema a bh' ann!

Napoli take the lead with a header from Beukema!

Beò an-drasta air BBC ALBA!

Watch live now on BBC ALBA! pic.twitter.com/m0vLzBnlUI

— BBC ALBA (@bbcalba) February 22, 2026

Alisson Santos dribbled around Marco Carnesecchi to deposit into an empty net only after he had wandered offside, while Mario Pasalic rode an Antonio Vergara challenge, but not the second from Juan Jesus.

Vanja Milinkovic-Savic acrobatically clawed a Kamaldeen Sulemana cross-shot out from under the bar, then got down for an even tougher save to palm his powerful strike round the post, and smothered his finish that went through a defender’s legs.

The referee pointed to the spot just before half-time when Hojlund ran into Isak Hien’s leg and went over it, although the defender did precious little to bring him down. VAR intervened and Daniele Chiffi changed his mind following the On-Field Review.

Alisson Santos shrugged off Nikola Krstovic to test Carnesecchi at the near post, the goalkeeper also alert on the follow-up Vergara header.

There was more controversy within 60 seconds of the restart, as Hojlund shrugged off Hien at the touchline and pulled back for the Miguel Gutierrez finish into the net. However, the referee disallowed it for a soft Hojlund tug on the Atalanta defender’s arm.

Napoli had a series of attempts off target from Alisson Santos and Vergara, but it was Atalanta who equalised when Pasalic rose for the glancing header from six yards on a Nicola Zalewski corner.

It was wide open, as Gianluca Scamacca’s powerful right-foot strike was palmed away at the base of the near post, then La Dea turned it around completely within 20 minutes.

Tadhal dha Atalanta! Mario Pašalić a bh' ann 'is tha cuisean co-ionnan!

Pašalić scores an equliser for Atalanta!

Atalanta 1-1 Napoli! pic.twitter.com/X2y4yL2Lcw

— BBC ALBA (@bbcalba) February 22, 2026

Lorenzo Bernasconi stood up a cross from the left and fellow substitute Samardzic sent a looping header into the far bottom corner from 10 yards, just beyond Milinkovic-Savic’s fingertips.

Napoli poured forward to the end, but were unable to get back into the game.

Atalanta 2-1 Napoli

Beukema 18 (N), Pasalic 61 (A), Samardzic 81 (A)

22-02-2026 14:00

MatchDay 26

Gewiss Stadium (Stadio Atleti Azzurri d'Italia)

Atalanta

Napoli

2 - 1

Player statistic

1st half

		18'		Sam Beukema (Assist: Miguel Gutiérrez)
		37'		Juan Jesus

2nd half

Mario Pasalic (Assist: Nicola Zalewski)		61'
Nicola Zalewski		77'
Lazar Samardžić (Assist: Lorenzo Bernasconi)		81'

Match statistic

56

Possession %

44

10

Total shots

10

7

Shots on target

4

2

Shots off target

4

1

Blocked shots

2

6

Corners

1

1

Offsides

2

10

Fouls

9

Atalanta

Napoli

Starting lineups

29

Marco Carnesecchi

Goalkeeper

77

Davide Zappacosta

Defender

42

Giorgio Scalvini

Defender

69'

4

Isak Hien

Defender

16

Raoul Bellanova

Defender

57'

23

Sead Kolasinac

Defender

84'

7

Kamaldeen Sulemana

Midfielder

46'

8

Mario Pasalic

Midfielder

15

Marten de Roon

Midfielder

59

Nicola Zalewski

Midfielder

90

Nikola Krstovic

Attacker

57'

32

Vanja Milinković-Savić

Goalkeeper

4

Alessandro Buongiorno

Defender

5

Juan Jesus

Defender

70'

3

Miguel Gutiérrez

Defender

63'

30

Pasquale Mazzocchi

Defender

63'

31

Sam Beukema

Defender

26

Antonio Vergara

Midfielder

70'

20

Eljif Elmas

Midfielder

68

Stanislav Lobotka

Midfielder

27

Alisson Santos

Attacker

85'

19

Rasmus Højlund

Attacker

Substitutes

31

Francesco Rossi

Goalkeeper

57

Marco Sportiello

Goalkeeper

13

Éderson

Midfielder

5

Mitchel Bakker

Defender

3

Odilon Kossounou

Defender

6

Yunus Musah

Midfielder

45

Dominic Vavassori

Midfielder

10

Lazar Samardžić

Midfielder

46'

9

Gianluca Scamacca

Attacker

57'

47

Lorenzo Bernasconi

Defender

57'

19

Berat Djimsiti

Defender

69'

69

Honest Ahanor

Defender

84'

1

Alex Meret

Goalkeeper

14

Nikita Contini

Goalkeeper

6

Billy Gilmour

Midfielder

98

Emmanuele De Chiara

Midfielder

95

Vincenzo Prisco

Midfielder

37

Leonardo Spinazzola

Defender

63'

21

Matteo Politano

Attacker

63'

17

Mathías Olivera

Defender

70'

23

Giovane

Attacker

70'

9

Romelu Lukaku

Attacker

85'

Milan welcome Christian Pulisic and Adrien Rabiot back to the starting XI with Rafael Leao as they host Mateo Pellegrino’s Parma.

It kicks off at San Siro at 17.00 GMT (18.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

The Rossoneri need a victory to keep the gap with leaders Inter intact at seven points, as it expanded with their rescheduled midweek draw against Como.

Santiago Gimenez is the only remaining absentee, as Rabiot has completed his ban and returns to the midfield with Luka Modric.

Strahinja Pavlovic sustained a bruise to the shin and is only fit for the bench, so Davide Bartesaghi drops into the back three, introducing Pervis Estupinan on the left wing.

There is a boost with Pulisic and Ruben Loftus-Cheek now fully recovered to join Rafael Leao in the starting XI.

Matteo Gabbia pulled out in the warm-up, replaced by Koni De Winter.

Coach Max Allegri sits out a touchline ban following his altercation with Cesc Fabregas’ Como staff.

Parma are on fine form and broke away from the danger zone thanks to back-to-back victories over Bologna and Verona.

Alessandro Circati is suspended, with Abdoulaye Ndiaye, Zion Suzuki, Pontus Almqvist and Matija Frigan still out of action, so Mariano Troilo steps into defence.

January signing Gabriel Strefezza gets his first start, in support of centre-forward Pellegrino.

Mandela Keita and Adrian Bernabé pull the midfield strings.

Milan vs. Parma line-ups

Milan: Maignan; Tomori, De Winter, Bartesaghi; Saelemaekers, Loftus-Cheek, Modric, Rabiot, Estupinan; Leao, Pulisic

Parma: Corvi; Delprato, Troilo, Valenti; Britschgi, Bernabé, Keita, Ordonez, Valeri; Strefezza, Pellegrino

22-02-2026 17:00

MatchDay 26

San Siro Stadium (Stadio Giuseppe Meazza)

Milan

Parma

0 - 1

Player statistic

1st half

Alexis Saelemaekers

32'

2nd half

		48'		Mariano Troilo
Rafael Leão		52'
		80'		Mariano Troilo (Assist: Emanuele Valeri)

Match statistic

66

Possession %

34

25

Total shots

9

6

Shots on target

3

10

Shots off target

3

9

Blocked shots

3

5

Corners

2

1

Offsides

1

13

Fouls

10

Milan

Parma

Starting lineups

16

Mike Maignan

Goalkeeper

33

Davide Bartesaghi

Defender

23

Fikayo Tomori

Defender

85'

46

Matteo Gabbia

Defender

2

Pervis Estupiñán

Defender

62'

12

Adrien Rabiot

Midfielder

56

Alexis Saelemaekers

Midfielder

14

Luka Modric

Midfielder

8

Ruben Loftus-Cheek

Midfielder

11'

11

Christian Pulisic

Attacker

62'

10

Rafael Leão

Attacker

40

Edoardo Corvi

Goalkeeper

14

Emanuele Valeri

Defender

15

Enrico Delprato

Defender

5

Lautaro Valenti

Defender

37

Mariano Troilo

Defender

27

Sascha Britschgi

Defender

10

Adrián Bernabé

Midfielder

59'

24

Christian Ordoñez

Midfielder

59'

16

Mandela Keita

Midfielder

7

Gabriel Strefezza

Attacker

76'

9

Mateo Pellegrino

Attacker

90'

Substitutes

1

Pietro Terracciano

Goalkeeper

4

Samuele Ricci

Midfielder

5

Koni De Winter

Defender

19

Youssouf Fofana

Midfielder

37

Matteo Pittarella

Goalkeeper

27

David Odogu

Defender

31

Strahinja Pavlovic

Defender

62'

9

Niclas Füllkrug

Attacker

62'

18

Christopher Nkunku

Attacker

85'

30

Ardon Jashari

Midfielder

24

Zachary Athekame

Defender

85'

29

Franco Carboni

Defender

66

Filippo Rinaldi

Goalkeeper

21

Gaetano Oristanio

Midfielder

25

Benja Cremaschi

Midfielder

61

Dominik Drobnic

Defender

67

Gabriele Casentini

Goalkeeper

23

Nesta Elphege

Attacker

63

Marlon Mena Martinez

Defender

41

Hans Nicolussi Caviglia

Midfielder

59'

22

Oliver Sörensen

Midfielder

59'

17

Jacob Ondrejka

Attacker

76'

8

Nahuel Estévez

Midfielder

90'

Multiple sources in Italy are reporting that Torino have decided to sack coach Marco Baroni, with Roberto D’Aversa the favourite to take over.

The Granata have been struggling in recent months and this afternoon’s 3-0 defeat to Genoa, when down to 10 men for the entire second half due to Emirhan Ilkhan’s red card, may well prove to be the final straw.

Baroni has overseen seven Serie A wins, six draws, and 13 defeats, while they were eliminated from the Coppa Italia quarter-finals by Inter earlier this month.

Torino pull the plug on Baroni era

Sport Mediaset and Sportitalia are confident that the decision has been made to dismiss Baroni, as well as the choice for his imminent replacement.

Sky Sport Italia note that President Urbano Cairo and director of sport Gianluca Petrachi left the stadium immediately after the final whistle.

The man chosen to take over is D’Aversa, who has been out of work since failing to stop Empoli’s relegation from Serie A in May 2025.

His previous clubs include Lecce, Sampdoria and Parma.

Raffaele Palladino reveals a new injury problem forcing changes for Atalanta against Napoli, insisting they will ‘think about the Champions League from tomorrow.’

It kicks off at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo at 14.00 GMT (15.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

There are a few changes to the starting XI, as rotation is necessary following the midweek Champions League play-off in Germany.

Palladino forced into some Atalanta changes

“Ederson had a muscular issue in training yesterday, he worked with the group, but I don’t want to risk doing any further damage,” Palladino told DAZN Italia.

“He wanted to be here, but I preferred not to take risks, as there are so many more games coming up. I am sure Mario Pasalic will replace him very well.

“Kamaldeen Sulemana starts today, because he trained well and always proved himself when participating.”

La Dea have been surging up the standings since Palladino took over from Ivan Juric in November 2025, and his debut was the 3-1 defeat to Napoli at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

They also set up a Coppa Italia semi-final with Lazio, but their Champions League participation is at risk after the 2-0 play-off loss to Borussia Dortmund.

“I am focusing on this match, which is very important for us, and we can think about the Champions League from tomorrow,” insisted Palladino.

“We’ve got to think today about a situation where every point is worth double, but we also want to prove ourselves against a strong opponent on our home turf.”

The second leg is coming up on Wednesday, with Charles De Ketelaere and Giacomo Raspadori still out of action.

Napoli also have a long absentee list, but start Alisson Santos and bring Rasmus Hojlund back to Bergamo, where his career really took off.

“There are many details that are important in these matches, as if you press Napoli high, they will just pierce your defence with vertical balls,” added Palladino.

“They have rapid wing-backs, so if you sit back and wait for them, they’ll get around you and dominate possession. We must have the perfect performance and show hunger.

“Napoli won the Scudetto last season, so they are accustomed to these games. I can’t wait for it to start.”

Antonio Conte warns Napoli and Atalanta ‘don’t hold back’ for today’s battle, but reacts with irritation to Scott McTominay fitness questions. ‘You’d have to talk to the doctors.’

It kicks off at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo at 14.00 GMT (15.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

This is a battle for European places, seeing as Conte is eager to shrug off any talk of a Scudetto challenge.

“It will certainly be a match where we need a lot of energy, as these are two teams who don’t hold back,” Conte told DAZN Italia.

“We want to dominate the game, these are sides who don’t sit back in their own half, wait and go on the counter. Inevitably, the duels will be decisive all over the pitch.

“Atalanta have unpredictability in attack too, as Sulemana and Zalewski can be devastating when they cut inside to shoot or go for goal. There are many talented players who can do the same.”

Conte frustrated at on-going Napoli injury crisis

The Partenopei are out of the Champions League and the Coppa Italia, while in Serie A they fought back twice to hold Roma in a 2-2 thriller.

Alisson Santos scored off the bench in that game and is rewarded here with his first start, especially as Scott McTominay, David Neres, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Amir Rrahmani, Kevin De Bruyne and Andre Frank Zambo Anguissa are still out injured.

Juan Jesus returns from suspension to bolster the defence, but when Conte was asked for injury updates, he looked visibly irritated.

“You’d have to talk to the doctors, because I haven’t seen McTominay training with us at all since he went off against Genoa. He has an inflammation, but we can’t figure out when he’ll be back. You need to speak to the medical staff, not with me, all I can do is say that Scott has not trained with us at all since Genoa.”

While De Bruyne is expected back in Naples next week, Conte warns that does not mean we can expect the former Manchester City star on the pitch.

“De Bruyne is a different matter, just look at how much Lukaku is struggling to recover from his serious injury, when the tendon was detached. I think talking about this is pointless now, as these are serious tendon injuries and a very long process for the full recovery.

“You have to hope these things don’t happen, as otherwise you risk losing a player for a whole year. So it’s not about when they return, but how they return.”

Napoli start Alisson Santos and Rasmus Hojlund for a difficult trip to Atalanta, who try to put Champions League disappointment behind them with Nikola Krstovic.

It kicks off at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo at 14.00 GMT (15.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from today’s Serie A games on the Liveblog.

This is a head to head for European places, as Atalanta in seventh can keep up with Como in closing on the top four, while the Partenopei want to consolidate third.

Napoli crashed out of the Champions League and the Coppa Italia in the last few weeks, as the injury crisis is taking its toll.

They fought back twice from a goal down to hold Roma 2-2 with Alisson Santos coming off the bench to score, and the January signing is rewarded with his first start.

Scott McTominay, David Neres, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Amir Rrahmani, Kevin De Bruyne and Andre Frank Zambo Anguissa are still out of action.

However, Juan Jesus returns from suspension, and Billy Gilmour is available on the bench after several months out.

Hojlund returns to Bergamo as an opponent, having seen his career effectively launched here.

Atalanta are surging in Serie A under coach Raffaele Palladino, and booked their place in the Coppa Italia semi-final against Lazio.

The mood was shaken though by the Champions League play-off 2-0 defeat to Borussia Dortmund, with the second leg coming up on Wednesday.

Giacomo Raspadori cannot face his former club, as he is out injured along with Charles De Ketelaere.

Krstovic is picked rather than not fully fit Gianluca Scamacca to lead the attack, with Nicola Zalewski and Kamaldeen Sulemana.

Giorgio Scalvini also returns to the starting XI in defence.

Atalanta vs. Napoli official line-ups

Atalanta: Carnesecchi; Scalvini, Hien, Kolasinac; Bellanova, De Roon, Pasalic, Zappacosta; Sulemana, Zalewski; Krstovic

Napoli: Milinkovic-Savic; Beukema, Juan Jesus, Buongiorno; Mazzocchi, Lobotka, Elmas, Gutierrez; Vergara, Alisson Santos; Hojlund

22-02-2026 14:00

MatchDay 26

Gewiss Stadium (Stadio Atleti Azzurri d'Italia)

Atalanta

Napoli

2 - 1

Player statistic

1st half

		18'		Sam Beukema (Assist: Miguel Gutiérrez)
		37'		Juan Jesus

2nd half

Mario Pasalic (Assist: Nicola Zalewski)		61'
Nicola Zalewski		77'
Lazar Samardžić (Assist: Lorenzo Bernasconi)		81'

Match statistic

56

Possession %

44

10

Total shots

10

7

Shots on target

4

2

Shots off target

4

1

Blocked shots

2

6

Corners

1

1

Offsides

2

10

Fouls

9

Atalanta

Napoli

Starting lineups

29

Marco Carnesecchi

Goalkeeper

77

Davide Zappacosta

Defender

42

Giorgio Scalvini

Defender

69'

4

Isak Hien

Defender

16

Raoul Bellanova

Defender

57'

23

Sead Kolasinac

Defender

84'

7

Kamaldeen Sulemana

Midfielder

46'

8

Mario Pasalic

Midfielder

15

Marten de Roon

Midfielder

59

Nicola Zalewski

Midfielder

90

Nikola Krstovic

Attacker

57'

32

Vanja Milinković-Savić

Goalkeeper

4

Alessandro Buongiorno

Defender

5

Juan Jesus

Defender

70'

3

Miguel Gutiérrez

Defender

63'

30

Pasquale Mazzocchi

Defender

63'

31

Sam Beukema

Defender

26

Antonio Vergara

Midfielder

70'

20

Eljif Elmas

Midfielder

68

Stanislav Lobotka

Midfielder

27

Alisson Santos

Attacker

85'

19

Rasmus Højlund

Attacker

Substitutes

31

Francesco Rossi

Goalkeeper

57

Marco Sportiello

Goalkeeper

13

Éderson

Midfielder

5

Mitchel Bakker

Defender

3

Odilon Kossounou

Defender

6

Yunus Musah

Midfielder

45

Dominic Vavassori

Midfielder

10

Lazar Samardžić

Midfielder

46'

9

Gianluca Scamacca

Attacker

57'

47

Lorenzo Bernasconi

Defender

57'

19

Berat Djimsiti

Defender

69'

69

Honest Ahanor

Defender

84'

1

Alex Meret

Goalkeeper

14

Nikita Contini

Goalkeeper

6

Billy Gilmour

Midfielder

98

Emmanuele De Chiara

Midfielder

95

Vincenzo Prisco

Midfielder

37

Leonardo Spinazzola

Defender

63'

21

Matteo Politano

Attacker

63'

17

Mathías Olivera

Defender

70'

23

Giovane

Attacker

70'

9

Romelu Lukaku

Attacker

85'

Italy international Gianluigi Donnarumma was again decisive with a sensational last-gasp save, as Manchester City beat Sandro Tonali’s Newcastle United in the Premier League.

The result was hanging in the balance after a Nico O’Reilly brace, around the temporary Lewis Hall equaliser.

In the final moments of the match this evening, Harvey Barnes thought he had managed to get Newcastle back on level terms again for 2-2 when hitting a sweet strike.

However, he hadn’t counted on the incredible reflexes of Azzurri hero Donnarumma, who flew to palm it out of the bottom corner.

Donnarumma keeps City in title race

Manchester City fans went wild on social media, noting it was the second time he made a match-saving intervention deep into stoppages after the one against Liverpool.

Erling Haaland drops to the floor in relief

Just look at how much that win means to Man City

@tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/OCI0wHfO6C

— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) February 21, 2026

His teammates also recognised what that save meant to keep the title race alive, rushing to hug Donnarumma after the final whistle.

Gianluigi Donnarumma.

What. A. Goalkeeper.

— Manchester City (@ManCity) February 21, 2026

Not all fans are happy with the situation, as some continued to criticise his poor distribution from the back, but this has always been an issue in his game going back to the days at Milan.

As one Manchester City supporter rather oddly put it, “all he has is generational shot saving.”

Maurizio Sarri reveals why he was ‘annoyed’ at Lazio after their 0-0 draw with Cagliari, and confirms Nicolò Rovella ‘fractured his clavicle’ in a new serious injury.

The Aquile are now without a Serie A victory three rounds, as this was their second stalemate along with a 2-0 defeat to Atalanta.

Most notably, it’s their second consecutive match without finding the net, as Elia Caprile kept out the late Danilo Cataldi free kick following Yerry Mina’s red card.

Sarri outlines Lazio problems

“I was annoyed because I didn’t like a lot of the choices made by my team. This is a tough place to play, Juventus and Roma lost here recently,” Sarri told Sky Sport Italia.

“This is a team we have to face moving the ball around quickly, but instead we tried to keep the ball and slow it down. I didn’t like that at all.

“It was a hard-fought match with few overall scoring opportunities for either side. We were dangerous a few times on the left for the final 20 minutes, because we introduced players who attacked there, but we should’ve done it before that.”

The lack of goals is a problem, as once again Daniel Maldini played as a False 9 this evening and struggled to make an impact.

“We are unbeaten away from home since November, and even that saw us denied a penalty at the 95^th minute. Perhaps we haven’t won as many on our travels, but I cannot ask for more from these lads,” noted Sarri.

“There are certain characteristics in the squad, so clearly Maldini will struggle to run into space, Isaksen is better at moving off the ball, while Zaccagni is not in good shape after his injury. We’ve been dealing with this since the start of the season, players are out for a month, month and a half, then we need to give them playing time so they can get up to speed.

“It’s not the only problem, of course, we’ve had others too.”

The biggest issue for Lazio tonight was seeing Rovella go off with an ice pack strapped to his shoulder, having fallen awkwardly after he was brought down.

“It is a cursed season for the reasons I won’t recap again, this evening we were missing six players injured, and unfortunately Rovella has fractured his clavicle. It’s a constant emergency situation,” noted Sarri.

They were already missing Pedro, Mario Gila, Toma Basic, Manuel Lazzari and Samuel Gigot, though Alessio Romagnoli returned from suspension.

Cagliari and Lazio shared the spoils with a goalless draw, as both sustained new injuries and Yerry Mina saw red for two bookable offences.

Both teams were coming off setbacks, as the Sardinians saw their run of three wins on the bounce cut off by two defeats to Roma and Lecce. The Aquile were pegged back 2-2 by Juventus, then lost to Atalanta. There was a lengthy absentee list for the hosts, including Michael Folorunsho, Alessandro Deiola, Gianluca Gaetano, Gennaro Borrelli, Andrea Belotti and Mattia Felici. Maurizio Sarri missed Pedro, Mario Gila, Toma Basic, Manuel Lazzari and Samuel Gigot, but at least Alessio Romagnoli returned from suspension.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Ze Pedro was unlucky not to give Cagliari the lead after 13 minutes, as his header clipped the outside of the near post on a corner.

Mattia Zaccagni nodded a corner over, then was surprised when both Michel Adopo and Alberto Dossena failed to cut out the Adam Marusic cross.

Adopo should’ve scored at the other end, ghosting between defenders to nod the Adam Obert cross wide from six yards.

Zaccagni also came sliding in and couldn’t connect with the Marusic pull-back across the face of goal, while Sebastiano Esposito turned inches off target on the Adopo assist from six yards.

The injury crisis intensified for the hosts, losing Luca Mazzitelli before half-time to a calf problem.

Elia Caprile smothered a Kenneth Taylor snapshot, but Lazio had a setback too when Nicolò Rovella fell awkwardly on his right shoulder.

Marco Palestra was a constant danger and had the ball in the net on 69 minutes when sending Pellegrini to ground with a dummy and drilling under Ivan Provedel, but was offside when running onto the Ze Pedro long ball.

Provedel got his fingertips to the Riyad Idrissi angled drive following a strong run from midfield, but Cagliari were reduced to 10 men in the final minutes.

Yerry Mina started the foul on Tijjani Noslin on the very edge of the area and continued it inside, the referee pointed initially to the spot and then awarded a free kick, but it was the second yellow card for the Colombian.

From the resulting free kick, Danilo Cataldi forced a difficult Caprile save at the near post. Cataldi also swung a great effort off the inside of the right boot from the edge of the box and it skimmed the top corner in stoppages.

Cagliari 0-0 Lazio

Sent off: Mina 85 (C)

21-02-2026 19:45

MatchDay 26

Unipol Domus (Sardegna Arena)

Cagliari

Lazio

0 - 0

Player statistic

1st half

Yerry Mina		25'
		45+1'		Luca Pellegrini

2nd half

Zé Pedro		56'
		64'		Oliver Provstgaard
Yerry Mina		85'

Match statistic

42

Possession %

58

11

Total shots

10

2

Shots on target

3

8

Shots off target

4

1

Blocked shots

3

3

Corners

6

2

Offsides

12

Fouls

15

Cagliari

Lazio

Starting lineups

1

Elia Caprile

Goalkeeper

33

Adam Obert

Defender

22

Alberto Dossena

Defender

2

Marco Palestra

Defender

26

Yerry Mina

Defender

32

Zé Pedro

Defender

4

Luca Mazzitelli

Midfielder

42'

8

Michel Adopo

Midfielder

25

Ibrahim Sulemana

Midfielder

94

Sebastiano Esposito

Attacker

73'

9

Semih Kılıçsoy

Attacker

88'

94

Ivan Provedel

Goalkeeper

77

Adam Marusic

Defender

13

Alessio Romagnoli

Defender

3

Luca Pellegrini

Defender

72'

25

Oliver Provstgaard

Defender

Daniel Maldini

Midfielder

72'

24

Kenneth Taylor

Midfielder

6

Nicolò Rovella

Midfielder

60'

21

Reda Belahyane

Midfielder

18

Gustav Isaksen

Attacker

60'

10

Mattia Zaccagni

Attacker

84'

Substitutes

30

Leonardo Pavoletti

Attacker

24

Giuseppe Ciocci

Goalkeeper

12

Alen Sherri

Goalkeeper

15

Juan Rodríguez

Defender

27

Joseph Liteta

Midfielder

20

Agustín Albarracín

Midfielder

18

Othniel Raterink

Midfielder

31

Paul Mendy

Attacker

3

Riyad Idrissi

Defender

42'

37

Yael Trepy

Attacker

73'

28

Gabriele Zappa

Defender

88'

4

Patric

Defender

23

Elseid Hysaj

Defender

55

Alessio Furlanetto

Goalkeeper

19

Boulaye Dia

Attacker

Edoardo Motta

Goalkeeper

7

Fisayo Dele-Bashiru

Midfielder

99

Adrian Przyborek

Attacker

32

Danilo Cataldi

Midfielder

60'

22

Matteo Cancellieri

Attacker

60'

17

Nuno Tavares

Defender

72'

20

Petar Ratkov

Attacker

72'

14

Tijjani Noslin

Attacker

84'

Paolo Montero, former coach of the Juventus Next Gen team and caretaker manager of the senior squad, is terminating his contract to take over Mario Balotelli’s Al-Ittifaq.

According to multiple sources including Sky Sport Italia and La Gazzetta dello Sport, the negotiations are effectively down to the details and it will be made official within 48 hours.

Montero spent a big chunk of his playing career in Italy with Atalanta and Juventus, before returning to South America in 2005 and retiring in 2007.

Montero bond with Juventus

He came back to Juve as a coach for their youth academy in 2022, moving up to the Under-19 side.

When Max Allegri was sacked in May 2024, Montero took over as interim coach of the senior Juventus squad for the final two games of the season.

However, after taking the Next Gen job, the Uruguayan was fired in November 2024, just 15 games into the new season.

His contract is still valid, though, and must be terminated by mutual consent before he can sign on as the coach of Al-Ittifaq.

This will allow him to work with former Italy international Balotelli, who joined the same UAE club as a free agent last month at the age of 35.

Federico Dimarco and Henrikh Mkhitaryan joke about the Inter wing-back’s latest Man of the Match award, but are ‘a family’ to protect Alessandro Bastoni from jeering.

It looked on paper like a more comfortable victory than it really was, because they had to wait until the 75^th minute to break Lecce down.

Dimarco had the ball in the net earlier, but it was disallowed because Marcus Thuram’s shoulder was offside in the build-up.

The wing-back was involved in both goals anyway, his corner flicked on for the Henrikh Mkhitaryan half-volley, then a pure assist for the Manuel Akanji header again from the flag.

Dimarco and Mkhitaryan joke about Inter award

“It was a real sigh of relief to get the breakthrough, as we knew it was a difficult game, as Lecce are well-organised. After our long journey to Bodo, we left on Thursday evening, then had to set off again yesterday to travel here, it wasn’t easy,” Dimarco told DAZN Italia.

“This win gave a sense of consistency after beating Juventus, and that is what we needed to keep pushing at the top of the table.”

It means Dimarco makes history as the first Serie A defender to provide assists in five consecutive appearances since 2006-07, and receives another MVP trophy.

“I thought Mkhitaryan deserved the Man of the Match award really, he came on so well. I leave the awards to my kids, they like arranging them, but what really matters for me is the team.”

The Italian now has 14 assists in Serie A this season, comfortably more than any other player.

Standing next to him, Mkhitaryan joked that Dimarco “needs to get a new house to store all these awards.”

“It is usually Bastoni in that position, but seeing as he just ran and made a big challenge, he didn’t have the energy to go there, so I did it instead,” revealed Mkhitaryan.

Following a week of controversy over his simulation to get Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu sent off, Bastoni was jeered loudly by Lecce fans every time he touched the ball this evening. How did his Inter teammates help him deal with that?

“It’s in the past now, we have to focus on the present. Bastoni and everyone else has already talked about it too much, we just focus on our work,” insisted Dimarco.

Mkhitaryan also had words of advice for the Italy international.

“We are a family, we support each other through thick and thin, but that is in the past now and we move on.”

Cristian Chivu backs Alessandro Bastoni against Lecce boo boys, reveals when Denzel Dumfries returns for Inter, and insists the Bodo/Glimt Champions League play-off is ‘wide open.’

The Nerazzurri remain unstoppable in Serie A, as this was their ninth consecutive away victory, and their 14^th win in the last 15 rounds.

They needed until the 75^th minute to break Lecce down at the Stadio Via del Mare, as the earlier Federico Dimarco goal was disallowed for Marcus Thuram’s tight offside position.

However, Dimarco’s corner was flicked on for a Henrikh Mkhitaryan goal, then another set play was nodded in by Manuel Akanji.

Chivu saw positive Inter and has European hope

“We wanted to make the most of the set plays, as we took a lot of them today and it’s a pity we didn’t do them better in the first half,” Chivu told DAZN Italia.

“We’ve got players who know how to attack the space, but above all an extraordinary left foot from Fede, who knows how to put the ball in.”

Who had the better crossing foot, Chivu, Dimarco or Inter assistant Aleksandar Kolarov?

“His foot is much better than mine ever was. I can’t talk for Kolarov, he might be offended…”

Inter needed a response today, as it was their first match since the midweek Champions League play-off defeat to Bodo/Glimt.

The second leg is coming up on Tuesday, but they will be without top scorer and captain Lautaro Martinez, who is out for circa a month with a soleus strain suffered on the synthetic pitch in Norway.

“We are aware of the difficulties, that we have to earn everything on the pitch and can take nothing for granted,” added Chivu.

“Now we have the second leg at home on Tuesday, we must be the best version of ourselves, because the qualification is still wide open. Nothing is decided yet.”

Bastoni was jeered loudly at every touch by the crowd in Lecce this evening, as the blowback continues from the incident where he got Pierre Kalulu of Juventus sent off.

“It’s over as far as I am concerned. I appreciate the professionalism of this defender and man, who understood his error, apologised for what happened, and is well aware that the team comes first. It’s done and dusted for me,” assured Chivu.

It was put to the coach that Marcus Thuram was struggling a little to be impactful today, in the absence of injured Lautaro Martinez.

“I have 24 marvellous players who all try to give their contribution. I liked Marcus today, he ran a lot, played with his back to goal, holding up the ball well. Davide Frattesi also had a great game, they are all involved, focused, keeping our feet on the ground and giving our contribution to the team.”

Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolò Barella were suspended today, but the good news from the treatment table is for Denzel Dumfries, who had ankle surgery in November.

“Denzel has done some things with us in recent weeks for training, not this week because we were travelling for most of it. Denzel will officially be with the rest of the team from Monday, and I think Hakan Calhanoglu will be too.”

Manuel Akanji insists it is not true that Inter are ‘different’ in the Champions League to Serie A, but Federico Dimarco is one of the ‘top three’ left-footed players he worked with.

The defender came off the bench and rose to nod in the Dimarco corner kick to seal their 2-0 victory away to Lecce.

He scored the second, as fellow substitute Henrikh Mkhitaryan had also turned in a flicked on Dimarco corner at the Stadio Via del Mare.

Akanji praise for Dimarco and Inter

“It is really important even when you are not starting, that you are focused and ready even before coming on,” Akanji told DAZN Italia.

“We saw that with first Mkhi and then me coming off the bench, but also we know how important set pieces can be, they can win you the match, and that is what happened today.”

When considering all the great players he has worked with, where does Dimarco’s left foot rate for Akanji?

“I am trying to think of all the teammates I’ve had, but he’s definitely in the top three. Dimarco has so many assists already, he might be the best, but I don’t want to say anything other than that to not discredit anyone else. He’s amazing.”

They were coming off a painful Champions League play-off defeat to Bodo/Glimt on Wednesday, beaten 3-1 in Norway and losing Lautaro Martinez to injury.

The former Manchester City defender was asked if there were two different Inter teams, one in Europe and one in the Italian league.

“I don’t think there’s two different Inters. The games we lost in the Champions League, most of them at least, were against big teams. We have the chance to turn it around with Bodo/Glimt in a few days,” insisted Akanji.

“Sometimes it works better, sometimes a bit less. I know before people would say we didn’t win big games, now they say we are two different teams in Europe and Italy, but we always try to do our best.”

It took until the 75^th minute to break on-form Lecce down, but Inter took all three points thanks to Federico Dimarco setting up Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Manuel Akanji goals.

The Nerazzurri were still shaken by their Champions League play-off 3-1 defeat to Bodo/Glimt, especially as they also lost Lautaro Martinez for a month to a soleus strain during that match in Norway. Denzel Dumfries was still out, with Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolò Barella suspended, so Davide Frattesi and Marcus Thuram stepped in. Lecce turned a corner with back-to-back wins over Udinese and Cagliari, and while Francesco Camarda and Medon Berisha were injured, Lameck Banda returned from his ban for a spot on the bench.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Alessandro Bastoni was loudly jeered by the crowd at every touch following his self-confessed simulation to get Pierre Kalulu sent off for Juventus last week.

In the opening 35 seconds, Kialonda Gaspar at full stretch made a decisive block on Marcus Thuram’s angled drive, injuring himself in the process and forcing a substitution within four minutes.

Substitute Jamil Siebert made an immediate impact, as he performed the goal-line clearance on a Luis Henrique volley from 12 yards to deny Inter the opener on 10 minutes.

Marcus Thuram nodded a Federico Dimarco free kick off target, while Francesco Pio Esposito’s strike was deflected over by Ylber Ramadani.

The Italian striker also forced Wladimiro Falcone into an acrobatic one-handed save, while Ramadani fired over after shrugging off a weak Petar Sucic tackle inside the area.

Thuram stood up the ball at the by-line for Esposito’s header from a tricky angle, denied again by Falcone at the near post, while Frattesi fired over from a slightly mis-placed Luis Henrique assist.

Inter stepped up a gear after the restart and there was nobody at the back post to meet the flicked Frattesi header on a corner, then Dimarco had the ball in the net on 51 minutes from a Thuram pull-back, but the Frenchman’s shoulder was offside in the build-up.

Lecce tried to go on the counter, but Banda slipped as he cut inside and got the shot away from the edge of the penalty area, as Frattesi nodded Bastoni’s cross wide of the near post.

Bastoni read the situation well to prevent Santiago Pierotti cutting inside in the area, but Inter immediately went on the counter and scored from the resulting corner.

Dimarco’s set play was flicked on and bounced in front of substitute Mkhitaryan, who swept in the half-volley from 14 yards with the right foot, sending it through a crowd.

It really should’ve been 2-0 when Dimarco started the move from his own half and combined with Mkhitaryan, but the first shot was parried by Falcone’s foot, then the second attempt cleared off the line by Tiago Gabriel.

Inter did double their advantage from another Dimarco corner, this one nodded in by a towering Manuel Akanji header into the far top corner.

Bastoni received a yellow card and will be suspended against Genoa, but safe for the Derby della Madonnina, and immediately afterwards was replaced by Carlos Augusto to complete Inter’s ninth consecutive Serie A away victory.

Lecce 0-2 Inter

Mkhitaryan 75 (I), Akanji 82 (I)

21-02-2026 17:00

MatchDay 26

Stadio Ettore Giardiniero - Via del Mare

LEC

INT

0 - 2

Player statistic

1st half

		10'		Stefan de Vrij
Tiago Gabriel		17'

2nd half

		75'		Henrikh Mkhitaryan
		82'		Manuel Akanji (Assist: Federico Dimarco)
		87'		Alessandro Bastoni

Match statistic

32

Possession %

68

3

Total shots

24

0

Shots on target

9

3

Shots off target

10

0

Blocked shots

5

2

Corners

10

3

Offsides

3

10

Fouls

8

LEC

INT

Starting lineups

30

Wladimiro Falcone

Goalkeeper

25

Antonino Gallo

Defender

17

Danilo Veiga

Defender

4

Kialonda Gaspar

Defender

4'

44

Tiago Gabriel

Defender

29

Lassana Coulibaly

Midfielder

83'

16

Omri Gandelman

Midfielder

60'

20

Ylber Ramadani

Midfielder

23

Riccardo Sottil

Attacker

60'

50

Santiago Pierotti

Attacker

83'

99

Walid Cheddira

Attacker

1

Yann Sommer

Goalkeeper

95

Alessandro Bastoni

Defender

88'

32

Federico Dimarco

Defender

8

Petar Sucic

Defender

60'

6

Stefan de Vrij

Defender

60'

31

Yann Bisseck

Defender

16

Davide Frattesi

Midfielder

7

Piotr Zielinski

Midfielder

94

Pio Esposito

Attacker

11

Luis Henrique

Attacker

69'

9

Marcus Thuram

Attacker

69'

Substitutes

14

Thórir Jóhann Helgason

Midfielder

32

Jasper Samooja

Goalkeeper

1

Christian Früchtl

Goalkeeper

36

Filip Marchwinski

Midfielder

18

Gaby Jean

Defender

8

Sadik Fofana

Defender

13

Matías Pérez

Defender

3

Corrie Ndaba

Defender

6

Álex Sala

Midfielder

5

Jamil Siebert

Defender

4'

19

Lameck Banda

Attacker

60'

79

Oumar Ngom

Midfielder

60'

11

Konan N’Dri

Attacker

83'

9

Nikola Stulic

Attacker

83'

15

Francesco Acerbi

Defender

36

Matteo Darmian

Defender

13

Josep Martínez

Goalkeeper

12

Raffaele Di Gennaro

Goalkeeper

58

Luka Topalović

Midfielder

43

Matteo Cocchi

Defender

57

Iwo Kaczmarski

Midfielder

22

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Midfielder

60'

25

Manuel Akanji

Defender

60'

14

Ange-Yoan Bonny

Defender

69'

17

Andy Diouf

Attacker

69'

30

Carlos Augusto

Midfielder

88'

Khephren Thuram insists Juventus ‘must not risk throwing everything away’ after a disastrous run of four defeats and a draw in all competition.

The Bianconeri are in crisis now, losing four of their last five games between Serie A, the Champions League and Coppa Italia.

They suffered their first Serie A home defeat since March 2025 today, defeated 2-0 by Como with goals from Mergim Vojvoda and Maxence Caqueret making the most of obvious errors.

Thuram puts Juventus on guard

“We are very angry after this game, because it was an important match and we lost it,” said Thuram in his press conference.

“It will be a totally different situation on Wednesday and we’ve got to immediately start focusing on the next test. We must play well and win.”

The pressure seems to be getting to Juve, who collapsed after the Juan Cabal red card in Istanbul and were beaten 5-2 by Galatasaray.

That leaves them with a mountain to climb on Wednesday to turn it around in that Champions League play-off.

“It’s not true that we have switched off, and we must not risk throwing everything away,” insisted Thuram.

“We lost the last two games, but we still have faith in ourselves and need to keep working. We knew Como play very good football, with a great coach like Cesc Fabregas who prepares them thoroughly.”

The Juventus fans jeered loudly at the final whistle and hurled insults at the team when they stood under the Curva at the end of this 2-0 home defeat.

“We have to keep working and try to improve those areas where we made mistakes today. We must improve both individually and as a unit.”

Inter’s Alessandro Bastoni has not shaken off the controversy for unsporting behaviour yet, as Lecce fans loudly jeered him at every touch today, with Cristian Chivu reassuring the defender.

You can follow all the action as it happens from that game on the Liveblog.

The Italy international was at the centre of controversy over the last week since he simulated a foul to get Pierre Kalulu sent off for Juventus in what turned out to be a 3-2 Nerazzurri victory.

As it was a second yellow card, it could not be overturned using VAR, while the video evidence protocol for serious unsporting behaviour was also too limiting for action to be taken later on.

Bastoni cannot shake off backlash

However, there were calls for Bastoni to be dropped from the Azzurri as punishment, and the issue is clearly not behind him yet.

From the opening whistle at the Stadio Via del Mare this evening, Lecce fans mercilessly and loudly jeered his every touch of the ball.

Chivu noticed on the touchline and tried to reassure the player, telling him to “just ignore them, keep going, you’re doing well, don’t think about it.”

It remains to be seen how long it will take Bastoni to shake off the controversy from that incident, even after his public apology for both making a meal of the situation, and then wildly celebrating the red card.

Inter President Beppe Marotta is confident Lautaro Martinez will ‘recover earlier than expected’ from a muscular strain, but demands focus against Lecce today.

It kicks off at the Stadio Via del Mare at 17.00 GMT (18.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from this game, Juventus vs. Como and Cagliari vs. Lazio on the Liveblog.

The last few days have been somewhat mixed for the Nerazzurri, as there was good news with their lead at the top of the Serie A table extended to seven points.

However, they lost 3-1 to Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League play-off and will be without captain Lautaro Martinez for a month following a soleus strain.

Inter shrug off ‘alibis’ after defeat in Norway

“We must all learn to adapt to the fixture list and certain types of playing surfaces,” Marotta told DAZN Italia.

“It certainly wasn’t a wonderful pitch, but the logic of many clubs participating in these tournaments means we have to play in these conditions.

“We have no comment other than to express regret at Lautaro’s injury, but it is certainly not an alibi that it was tough to play on a synthetic surface.

“Lautaro is our captain and he is sad not to be here, but he has been passing on his passion and motivation to the squad. We hope he can recover as quickly as possible, but we also need to be cautious, because it is a serious muscular problem.

“I am sure that he is such a tenacious figure, Lautaro will be able to return earlier than expected.”

There are more changes forced today, as Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolò Barella are both suspended, so Davide Frattesi gets a rare start in midfield.

“Determination is essential in these matches, as Lecce are not a walk in the park, especially as they are in good shape recently, and we are missing key players, but those who are here will give their all,” insisted the Inter President.

“From tomorrow, Cristian Chivu and the players will start to think about Tuesday’s game.”

Inter have also been at the centre of controversy in the last week, following Alessandro Bastoni’s simulation and the controversial Pierre Kalulu red card in their 3-2 win over Juventus.

Cesc Fabregas admits he learned from ‘second father’ Arsene Wenger as Como shocked Juventus with a 2-0 victory, but rejects Champions League ambitions. ‘One step at a time.’

This was a huge victory for the minnows, who managed to beat Juve away in Serie A for the first time since March 1951.

They were clinical in Turin, pouncing on defensive errors to secure a 2-0 result with Mergim Vojvoda and Maxence Caqueret, while both Lucas Da Cunha and Juve’s Teun Koopmeiners rattled the woodwork.

Fabregas ‘proud’ as Como beat Juventus

“Focus becomes fundamental if you want to come here and beat a strong team with a coach who had turned a corner. I know people look only at the results, but if you look at the style of football and level of performances since Spalletti arrived, it is an incredible turnaround,” Fabregas told DAZN Italia.

“We tried to play in a way that made it difficult for them today. My lads put in a top performance, and we did something different to other games, which was to score the second goal. Against this kind of talent and quality, if you don’t get the second goal, they will claw you back eventually.

“I really liked that my goalkeeper only made one save in the whole match, which means we were in control of the situation.”

Martin Baturina went off with an injury, but he was replaced by Sergi Roberto for a very technical and possession-based midfield, even without suspended Nico Paz.

“I cannot lie and say Nico Paz is not important, of course he is, but I think the team realising they can win even without him is a big boost for their self-belief. Of course he is a fantastic player and will continue to be crucial for us,” added Fabregas.

“When you play this type of game, there are moments when players have to take control, otherwise they start losing the ball, losing confidence. We need players who want the ball at their feet and have the character to deal with that pressure.

“We can also play in different ways, so we have some who are better on the counter-attack, others who like to keep the ball. There are so many games, even within a single game, a tactical adjustment can transform everything and make it 100 games in one.

“I can say this as a Spaniard, Juventus are like the Real Madrid of Italy, so for me to come here and play like this makes me very proud.”

Como have now closed to within a point of fifth-placed Juventus, so they are well in the fight not just for Europe, but potentially even the Champions League spots.

They are also preparing for the Coppa Italia semi-final against Inter next month.

“I cannot say we are going for one target or another, don’t forget we were in Serie B a year and a half ago, so we’ve got to take it calmly, one step at a time, building a culture and identity that can take us to win every game we possibly can.”

It was also put to the former Arsenal midfielder that the second goal on the counter from a corner felt similar to Arsene Wenger’s style.

“Arsene Wenger is like a second father to me, and obviously he worked a lot on transitions, attacking the space, something that is even more important in modern football. I learned a lot from him and want my team to do that,” concluded Fabregas.

Luciano Spalletti admits the ‘real opponents for Juventus are ourselves’ after visible psychological fragility in the 2-0 defeat to Como. ‘It’s all about self-belief.’

The Bianconeri’s form goes from bad to worse, as they have now scraped only one draw in the last five competitive games.

If they could look to the red cards for their losses to Inter and Galatasaray, there was no such excuse against Como, as costly defensive and goalkeeping errors allowed Mergim Vojvoda and Maxence Caqueret to secure a 2-0 result in Turin.

Spalletti recognises Juventus crisis

“The performance was also dictated by that first goal, because incidents do make the difference,” Spalletti told DAZN Italia.

“We tried to get back into the game with individual pressing, but they forced us to go after them with their quality and possession.

“When you concede the opening goal 13 times, you pay for that in the long run.”

“There was a spell when we had enthusiasm and some wonderful performances, then when that is lacking, so is the self-belief, the errors prove costly, and it becomes difficult to react psychologically,” added Spalletti.

“This is how it works in the heads of the players, there is too much pressure over recent results, and these moments make the difference.”

There were very loud jeers at the final whistle from the home fans, who have grown frustrated with the lack of character shown by this squad.

In the next week, they will try to overturn a 5-2 Champions League play-off defeat to Galatasaray, then visit Roma in Serie A.

“It’s all about self-belief, that we have what it takes. We had managed to create that belief in our potential, but when confidence and a sense of authority goes… I saw misplaced passes that are simply never done by my players. It’s not something that happens, and they feel trapped by the situation.”

This is the 13^th time in the current Serie A campaign that Juve conceded with the first shot on target, and once again goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio looked surprisingly shaky, beaten by an effort at the near post.

“Di Gregorio has no extra responsibility compared to all his teammates. He makes a mistake, just as the superficial back-pass was a mistake in the build-up. Everyone could’ve done better defending that situation, not losing the ball cheaply, the responsibility must always be shared.”

Juventus were without Pierre Kalulu this afternoon, as he was suspended despite the appeal over Alessandro Bastoni’s simulation and that second yellow card against Inter.

Gleison Bremer, Emil Holm, Dusan Vlahovic and Arek Milik were also injured, with Jonathan David not fully fit, but Manuel Locatelli will sit out a ban against Roma.

“Our opponents are in this case ourselves. If we can sort some things out on a psychological and technical level, then we can have our say. If this is our level, then we’ll lose and cannot have ambition for any result,” confessed Spalletti.

Como made the most of embarrassing Juventus errors for a surprising 2-0 victory in Turin, plunging the Old Lady into crisis mode and moving to within a point of fifth place.

There were only four points separating fifth from sixth going into this weekend. The Bianconeri were trying to shake off back-to-back defeats to Inter and Galatasaray, with Pierre Kalulu controversially suspended, Gleison Bremer, Emil Holm, Dusan Vlahovic and Arek Milik injured, plus Jonathan David not at 100 per cent. Como had Nico Paz suspended after the midweek 1-1 draw with Milan, while Assane Diao and Edoardo Goldaniga were long-term absentees, but Alvaro Morata returned from his ban.

See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.

Juventus debuted their new special edition retro fourth kit with horizontal black and white stripes.

Jean Butez flew to palm away an early Kenan Yildiz snapshot, but Como took the lead after a series of errors. First Weston McKennie misplaced a pass in midfield, then Mergim Vojvoda cut inside Teun Koopmeiners for a shot that bent back Michele Di Gregorio’s very weak hand at the near post. Even with a slight deflection off Fabio Miretti, it was still a howler from the goalkeeper. Incredibly, it was the 13^th time this season Juve conceded with the first shot on goal.

Butez anticipated the Lois Openda lob, but it was so nearly 2-0 when Di Gregorio struggled to deal with a poor Koopmeiners back-pass, allowing Lucas Da Cunha’s chip to bounce off the crossbar of an open goal.

Alex Valle also hit a fresh-air shot from 12 yards, while Tasos Douvikas sent a glancing header wide, and had a shot charged down from a corner.

Como doubled their lead on the classic counter-attack from a Juventus corner, sparked by Sergi Roberto, with Da Cunha rolling across from the right for Maxence Caqueret to sweep in from eight yards.

A Koopmeiners header on the Kenan Yildiz cross after another corner skimmed the far post, but the Bianconeri rarely created genuine scoring opportunities. To make matters worse, Manuel Locatelli was booked and will be suspended for next week’s clash with Roma.

Koopmeiners came close at the 84^th minute when his free kick thumped the upright, then Jonathan David nodded a Francisco Conceicao cross over in the same move.

It is the first Juventus home defeat in Serie A since March 2025, but also means they have amassed one draw in the last five competitive games.

Juventus 0-2 Como

Vojvoda 11 (C), Caqueret 61 (C)

21-02-2026 14:00

MatchDay 26

Juventus Stadium (Allianz Stadium)

Juventus

Como

0 - 2

Player statistic

1st half

11'

Mërgim Vojvoda (Assist: Anastasios Douvikas)

2nd half

		61'		Maxence Caqueret (Assist: Lucas Da Cunha)
Manuel Locatelli		73'

Match statistic

52

Possession %

48

11

Total shots

11

3

Shots on target

2

6

Shots off target

7

2

Blocked shots

2

7

Corners

2

4

Offsides

10

Fouls

15

Juventus

Como

Starting lineups

16

Michele Di Gregorio

Goalkeeper

27

Andrea Cambiaso

Defender

83'

4

Federico Gatti

Defender

6

Lloyd Kelly

Defender

21

Fabio Miretti

Midfielder

46'

19

Khéphren Thuram

Midfielder

74'

5

Manuel Locatelli

Midfielder

8

Teun Koopmeiners

Midfielder

22

Weston McKennie

Midfielder

10

Kenan Yıldız

Attacker

83'

20

Loïs Openda

Attacker

76'

1

Jean Butez

Goalkeeper

3

Álex Valle

Defender

28

Ivan Smolcic

Defender

14

Jacobo Ramón

Defender

2

Marc Oliver Kempf

Defender

31

Mërgim Vojvoda

Defender

74'

20

Martin Baturina

Midfielder

60'

6

Maxence Caqueret

Midfielder

86'

23

Máximo Perrone

Midfielder

11

Anastasios Douvikas

Attacker

87'

33

Lucas Da Cunha

Attacker

74'

Substitutes

23

Carlo Pinsoglio

Goalkeeper

1

Mattia Perin

Goalkeeper

11

Edon Zhegrova

Attacker

32

Juan Cabal

Defender

50

Niccolò Rizzo

Defender

7

Francisco Conceição

Attacker

46'

13

Jeremie Boga

Attacker

74'

30

Jonathan David

Attacker

76'

18

Filip Kostic

Midfielder

83'

17

Vasilije Adžić

Midfielder

83'

22

Mauro Vigorito

Goalkeeper

44

Nikola Cavlina

Goalkeeper

42

Jayden Addai

Attacker

19

Nicolas Kühn

Attacker

17

Jesús Rodriguez

Attacker

21

Noel Törnqvist

Goalkeeper

Adrian Lahdo

Midfielder

8

Sergi Roberto

Midfielder

60'

34

Diego Carlos

Defender

74'

77

Ignace Van Der Brempt

Defender

74'

18

Alberto Moreno

Defender

86'

7

Álvaro Morata

Attacker

87'

Inter try to consolidate their Serie A leadership without Lautaro Martinez and two top midfielders, so Marcus Thuram and Francesco Pio Esposito start for the trip to revitalised Lecce.

It kicks off at the Stadio Via del Mare at 17.00 GMT (18.00 CET).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens from this game, Juventus vs. Como and Cagliari vs. Lazio on the Liveblog.

The Nerazzurri had a difficult few days, as while their advantage at the top of the Serie A table was extended to seven points, they were also beaten 3-1 in Norway by Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League play-off.

Even worse news is that Lautaro Martinez suffered a calf strain during that match and has been ruled out for circa a month.

He joins Denzel Dumfries on the treatment table, but today both Hakan Calhanoglu and Nicolò Barella are suspended.

It means forced changes, with Davide Frattesi and Petar Sucic stepping into the starting XI, while Federico Dimarco was rested in Norway.

Esposito gets the nod alongside Thuram, having scored midweek away to Bodo/Glimt.

Lecce have really turned a corner in recent weeks, as they have now won two on the bounce against Udinese and Cagliari to break free of the relegation zone.

Francesco Camarda is still struggling with a dislocated shoulder, while Medon Berisha is also on the treatment table, but Lameck Banda returns from suspension.

Nonetheless, he is on the bench, as Lecce stick with the line-up that won the last two Serie A matches, including January signings Omri Gandelman and Walid Cheddira.

Lecce vs. Inter official line-ups

Lecce: Falcone; Veiga, Gaspar, Tiago Gabriel, Gallo; Ramadani, Coulibaly; Pierotti, Gandelman, Sottil; Cheddira

Inter: Sommer; Bisseck, De Vrji, Bastoni; Luis Henrique, Frattesi, Zielinski, Sucic, Dimarco; Thuram, Esposito

21-02-2026 17:00

MatchDay 26

Stadio Ettore Giardiniero - Via del Mare

Lecce

Inter

0 - 2

Player statistic

1st half

		10'		Stefan de Vrij
Tiago Gabriel		17'

2nd half

		75'		Henrikh Mkhitaryan
		82'		Manuel Akanji (Assist: Federico Dimarco)
		87'		Alessandro Bastoni

Match statistic

32

Possession %

68

3

Total shots

24

0

Shots on target

9

3

Shots off target

10

0

Blocked shots

5

2

Corners

10

3

Offsides

3

10

Fouls

8

Lecce

Inter

Starting lineups

30

Wladimiro Falcone

Goalkeeper

25

Antonino Gallo

Defender

17

Danilo Veiga

Defender

4

Kialonda Gaspar

Defender

4'

44

Tiago Gabriel

Defender

29

Lassana Coulibaly

Midfielder

83'

16

Omri Gandelman

Midfielder

60'

20

Ylber Ramadani

Midfielder

23

Riccardo Sottil

Attacker

60'

50

Santiago Pierotti

Attacker

83'

99

Walid Cheddira

Attacker

1

Yann Sommer

Goalkeeper

95

Alessandro Bastoni

Defender

88'

32

Federico Dimarco

Defender

8

Petar Sucic

Defender

60'

6

Stefan de Vrij

Defender

60'

31

Yann Bisseck

Defender

16

Davide Frattesi

Midfielder

7

Piotr Zielinski

Midfielder

94

Pio Esposito

Attacker

11

Luis Henrique

Attacker

69'

9

Marcus Thuram

Attacker

69'

Substitutes

14

Thórir Jóhann Helgason

Midfielder

32

Jasper Samooja

Goalkeeper

1

Christian Früchtl

Goalkeeper

36

Filip Marchwinski

Midfielder

18

Gaby Jean

Defender

8

Sadik Fofana

Defender

13

Matías Pérez

Defender

3

Corrie Ndaba

Defender

6

Álex Sala

Midfielder

5

Jamil Siebert

Defender

4'

19

Lameck Banda

Attacker

60'

79

Oumar Ngom

Midfielder

60'

11

Konan N’Dri

Attacker

83'

9

Nikola Stulic

Attacker

83'

15

Francesco Acerbi

Defender

36

Matteo Darmian

Defender

13

Josep Martínez

Goalkeeper

12

Raffaele Di Gennaro

Goalkeeper

58

Luka Topalović

Midfielder

43

Matteo Cocchi

Defender

57

Iwo Kaczmarski

Midfielder

22

Henrikh Mkhitaryan

Midfielder

60'

25

Manuel Akanji

Defender

60'

14

Ange-Yoan Bonny

Defender

69'

17

Andy Diouf

Attacker

69'

30

Carlos Augusto

Midfielder

88'