The Tops and Flops of Serie A Round 13: Uncatchable Thuram, Unwatchable Milan-Juventus | OneFootball

With a couple of major showdowns on the card, much was expected from Serie A Round 13. Needless to say, the action this weekend generally fell off the mark, especially in the top clashes. So all in all, this matchday was filled with draws, and most of them weren’t exactly exciting. That being said, the round still had its moments, including some scintillating showings from the likes of Inter and Atalanta. So let’s dissect the events that marked the Serie A weekend in our latest edition of the Tops and Flops.

Top (Player): Marcus Thuram

On a weekend that didn’t witness too many outstanding individual displays, a personal brace and an assist was more than enough to earn Marcus Thuram the nod. The French striker made sure Lautaro Martinez’s absence was barely noticed as he led the demolition of the hapless Verona.

The 27-year-old created Joaquin Correa’s opener before the latter returned the favor by putting him through on goal. Thuram rounded Lorenzo Montipo to slot it in the open net. He then replicated the same move after receiving a formidable assist from Alessandro Bastoni.

Give this man some space at your own peril.

Flop (Player): Tomasso Pobega

Tomasso Pobega single-handedly wrecked Bologna’s outing at the Stadio Olimpico. After earning a yellow card, the former Milan man should have been wise enough to avoid any needless challenges. Instead, he decided to chase Matteo Guendouzi all the way down to the Lazio penalty box before sliding in late on the Frenchman who was all too happy to theatrically throw himself to the ground.

Pobega’s foolish mistake left the Rossoblu with a man down for almost an hour of play. At the time of his dismissal, it was still a goalless affair. Unsurprisingly, The Biancocelesti went on to win by three unanswered goals.

Top (Coach): Gian Piero Gasperini

This season, we haven’t mentioned Gian Piero Gasperini in this category as much as we should have, mainly because we grew accustomed to his exploits that we’re no longer taken in awe as we used to.

Nevertheless, the old fox’s exploits remain exceptional, and perhaps even irreplicable in Bergamo, as Atalanta now look every bit of a serious title challenger.

On Saturday, the Orobici overwhelmed Parma with an unstoppable attacking flow coming from every corner. Watching the wingbacks, the midfielders, and at times the defenders all coming at you at once must be a terrifying experience for the opposition.

This well-oiled machine remains a joy to watch for the fans, unless when they’re playing your team.

Flop (Coach): Paolo Zanetti

For one reason or another, Paolo Zanetti insisted on adopting a high attacking line against Thuram who clearly had the edge in pace over the Verona defenders.

The result was simply devastating…

Top (Team): Inter

When the reigning Serie A champions find the rhythm, they can be a thorn in the back for the biggest clubs on the continent. Therefore, Verona never stood a chance, not against this Inter.

Even with Lautaro out of the lineup, the Nerazzurri were still devastating at the Bentegodi. Simone Inzaghi even managed to resurrect Joaquin Correa who has been the forgotten (or perhaps maligned) man at Appiano Gentile.

Inter put the match to bed early by scoring five goals before the half-time whistle, allowing them to coast throughout the second period.

This was truly a perfect scenario with a Champions League contest around the corner.

Flop (Team): Verona

As we mentioned above, Zanetti’s approach hardly helped the team’s cause, but the Gialloblu were miserable both individually and collectively. Reda Belahyane and Co. completely lost the plot in the middle of the park, while the defenders were all over the place.

Verona must find a way to halt their steep decline before they hit rock bottom.

Top (Goalkeeper): Wladimiro Falcone

In a weekend that saw three managers making their club debuts, Marco Giampaolo was the only one who enjoyed a happy start, as his Lecce returned south with three points in the bag following a hard-fought victory in Venice.

Patrick Dorgu scored the solitary goal of the contest, but it has to be said that it came against the run of play, as Venezia was the better side. However, Eusebio Di Francesco’s men simply couldn’t beat Wladimiro Falcone who was superb between the sticks, pulling off six saves to keep a most deserved clean sheet.

Flop (Goalkeeper): Emil Audero

While Fiorentina were always likely to beat Como, Emil Audero could have at least made the Tuscans’ lives slightly harder. However, he failed to deal with Yacine Adli’s opener, even though his low drive was too central.

The former Juventus and Inter goalkeeper was then wrongfooted by Moise Kean who managed to find the back of the with a tame shot.

Top (Super-Subs): Samuel Gigot & Fisayo Dele-Bashiru

On Sunday, two Lazio players scored their first-ever goals in Serie A after coming off the bench. Samuel Gigot broke the deadlock by nodding the ball home at the back post, while Fisayo Dele-Bashiru pounced on a loose ball to put the exclamation mark on the Biancocelesti’s victory with a third goal in the final minutes.

Top (Match): Genoa vs Cagliari

While it wasn’t an instant classic by any means, this back-and-forth contest had enough twists and turns to be selected as the pick of the bunch in this underwhelming weekend.

Just one week after hosting a rugby contest, the Luigi Ferraris’ pitch surely wasn’t suitable for a top-flight match, but that’s Serie A for you.

Cagliari took the lead from the spot, but Genoa managed to overturn the result through Morten Frendrup and Fabio Miretti. But just when Patrick Vieira thought he was set to prevail on his managerial debut, the referee awarded the Sardinians another penalty kick, so the contest ended 2-2.

Flop (Match): Milan vs Juventus

The snoozefest to bore all snoozefests. It felt as if the San Siro was the last place the Milan and Juventus players wanted to be on Saturday evening, as neither side seemed particularly interested in playing actual football. Even the biggest tactical purists would struggle to justify how awfully this one unfolded.

Throughout the match, neither Mike Maignan nor Michele Di Gregorio were made to work for their clean sheets, as the encounter hardly saw any dangerous chances on either end.

Perhaps Juventus could be slightly forgiven amid their injury crisis which forced Thiago Motta to play Weston McKennie in attack, but Paulo Fonseca’s over-cautious approach was unjustifiable.

Top (Supporters): Verona

Despite watching their team getting dismantled in front of their eyes, the Verona supporters at the Bentegodi kept cheering on their team throughout their losing effort against Inter, and even saluted them after the final whistle.

A classy gesture for sure, but testing the fans’ patience in the coming weeks remains unadvisable.

Top (Assist): Alessandro Bastoni

Watching Alessandro Bastoni distribute the ball, it’s hard to believe he’s a proper centre-back, as his technical skills are almost worthy of a creative midfielder.

The Inter stalwart displayed his magical touch once again by putting Thuram through on goal with an inch-perfect long ball.

Top (Awkward Goal): Yann Bisseck

With Bastoni providing a sublime assist and Stefan de Vrij netting a goal, Yann Bisseck wasn’t going to allow himself to be shamed by his fellow defenders, so he insisted on adding his name on the scoresheet, even through the most awkward of finishes.

While the execution is questionable, the determination is admirable.

Top (Goal): Matteo Cancellieri

Although it proved to be a mere consolation goal, Matteo Cancellieri scored the best strike of a weekend that lacked genuine pearlers. The Parma winger fooled Rafael Toloi with a simple turn before dribbling past the solid Isak Hien and beating Matteo Carnesecchi with an unstoppable strike to the roof of the net.