Torino act quick for win

Two goals in a minute kept Torino's dreams alive of qualifying for Europe next season as they came from behind to beat Genoa 2-1.

Two goals in a minute kept Torino's dreams alive of qualifying for Europe next season as they came from behind to beat Genoa 2-1 in a dramatic finale at the Stadio Olimpico. An unorthodox goal five minutes from time from Alberto Gilardino seemed like it would be enough for Genoa to earn the points, but Torino refused to accept defeat. In stoppage time, first Ciro Immobile brought them level before Alessio Cerci struck a winner to keep the Granata in the hunt for a top-five finish as they remain five points behind Inter Milan. It took over 20 minutes before the first chance of the game arrived. Cerci burst through and looked for the far corner of Mattia Perin's goal with his shot, but the Genoa goalkeeper got a hand to the ball to keep it out. Immobile then wasted too much time to get a shot in against his former club as Torino enjoyed a good spell of pressure. The first major threat to the Torino goal came from their own defender, Kamil Glik, early in the second half when his back-header nearly caught out his own goalkeeper. Daniele Padelli responded well, though, and changed direction in an instant to stretch and push the ball behind. Whether it was for the heat or the relatively low stakes, neither side seemed interested in moving out of first gear as they merely continued to go through the motions at the sun-drenched Olimpico. The hosts got their second wind going into the final 15 minutes and they had a penalty appeal turned down, while they were also furious that Andrea Bertolacci was not shown a second yellow card for a handball. The Genoa penalty area came under siege, but, when the visitors finally managed to relieve the pressure, they raced up the other end of the field to score what looked set to be the winner. Stefano Sturaro sent in a cross from the left which was met by Gilardino at the far post, and he managed to bundle the ball over the line with his midriff. Paulo Barreto was sent on as a third striker by Torino coach Giampiero Ventura, and, within a minute, the Granata levelled. Immobile picked up the ball on the edge of the penalty area and turned to curl his shot into the top-right corner. Perin got his fingertips to the ball, but failed to keep it out. The fans were only settling again after that goal when Cerci clinched victory in the third minute of stoppage time with an unstoppable shot from 25 yards which clipped the right-hand upright on its way past Perin, earning Torino victory from the jaws of defeat.