Serie A resumes as Torino and Parma share spoils

Torino captain Andrea Belotti had a penalty saved in a 1-1 draw at home to Parma as Serie A finally resumed following a three-month coronavirus stoppage on Saturday.

Nicolas Nkoulou headed struggling Torino ahead in the 15th minute and the Cameroon defender celebrated the first Serie A goal since the restart by taking a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Torino‘s shirts had the words “Thank you to all the heroes” printed under the badge as a tribute to Italy’s health workers and, as with all Italian matches for the time being, the game was played behind closed doors.

The match was originally due to be played on Feb. 23 but became one of the first to be called off as the coronavirus began to spread through Italy. Serie A was eventually suspended just over two weeks later.

Juraj Kucka fired seventh-placed Parma level in the 31st minute after Gervinho found his way to the byline and pulled the ball back.

In the evening match, Verona beat Cagliari 2-1 with a Di Carmine brace, ruining Walter Zenga’s return to management on the Sardinian bench. This victory puts the Veneto team on the path for an outside change for a European classification.

via Reuters / Gazzetta dello Sport