AS Roma's title hopes took a further dive on Sunday after they were held to their sixth Serie A draw in seven games, leaving Juventus nine points clear at the top of the table.
Roma’s visit to Verona ended 1-1, despite talismanic captain Francesco Totti giving them a first-half lead with his 240th league goal.
Elsewhere, ailing AC Milan got back to winning ways with a precious 2-0 home win over Cesena, while Lazio climbed up to fourth thanks to Antonio Candreva's superb second-half winner in a 2-1 home defeat of Palermo.
Massimo Maccarone scored a double, one in each half, to send Empoli on their way to a 3-0 home win over Chievo, while the Parma v Udinese fixture was postponed as the cash-strapped hosts, on the verge of bankruptcy, had no money to pay stadium stewards.
In Sunday’s late game on-loan Chelsea midfielder Mohamed Salah came off the bench to give Fiorentina an 85th minute lead over Torino, only for the visitors to level two minutes later when Giuseppe Vives pounced on a defensive slip-up to fire past Ciprian Tatarusanu from a tight angle.
Champions Juventus had taken their lead over Roma to 10 points on Friday, a 2-1 win over Atalanta giving the title holders a boost ahead of Tuesday's Uefa Champions League last 16 meeting with Borussia Dortmund.
It left Roma under the cosh on a difficult trip to Verona’s Stadio Bentegodi and although the visitors showed plenty of enterprise, Rudi Garcia’s men still struggled once more to produce a match-winner.
“We’re creating chances that are going to waste,” Garcia told Sky Sport after the game.
“As well as Ljajic’s efforts on goal, Nainggolan came close in the opening minutes. If we’d put those away, we could have settled the game by the end of the first half.”
Radja Nainggolan and Adem Ljajic both tested home keeper Francesco Benussi in the opening exchanges.
Totti, making his return after a spell out due to flu, looked under par during the opening exchanges.
But the 38-year-old eclipsed his mediocre start with a superbly-struck dipping shot from 30 metres out which beat Benussi at his near post in the 26th minute.
Verona levelled 10 minutes later when Bosko Jankovic rose above makeshift defender Alessandro Florenzi to meet a corner with a header which came off the legs of Seydou Keita before wrong-footing Morgan De Sanctis.
Florenzi was forced off moments later with an injury knock and replaced by Greek defender Vasilis Torosidis, while Ljajic narrowly failed to give the visitors a half-time lead when his free kick smacked off the crossbar.
Milan welcomed Cesena to the San Siro looking for only their third win in 10 games and Giacomo Bonaventura broke the deadlock on 22 minutes with a low angled strike that beat Nicola Leali at his far post.
Milan had Christian Abbiati to thank for keeping a clean sheet when the keeper produced a great one-handed save in first-half injury-time from Giuseppe de Feudis’ superb first-time effort.
But the hosts made sure of the win when Giampaolo Pazzini came off the bench to fire a 90th minute second goal past Leali from the penalty spot after Carlos Carbonera was adjudged to have pushed Luca Antonelli.
Although Milan are 24 points behind Juve, captain Riccardo Montolivo said: “Apart from the result, I think the team should be complimented for a solid display.
“We deserved the win and have to keep going like this. It’s a positive day for everyone.”
At the Stadio Olimpico, Lazio were stunned in the 26th minute when Paulo Dybala was sent through to beat Federico Marchetti at the keeper’s far post after Mauricio was dispossessed to the left of the area.
Lazio were back on level terms barely seven minutes later when skipper Stefano Mauri bundled home from close range.
And the hosts secured the points on 78 minutes when Candreva worked his way around two players to the left of goal before firing past Stefano Sorrentino and into the far top corner.
Lazio moved up to fourth, 17 points behind Juventus and only two behind Napoli in the third and last Champions League qualifying spot.
On Monday Napoli can pull to within three points of Roma with a home win against Sassuolo, while Cagliari, third-from-bottom, host Inter Milan.
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
JOKE'S%20ON%20YOU
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Cultural fiesta
What: The Al Burda Festival
When: November 14 (from 10am)
Where: Warehouse421, Abu Dhabi
The Al Burda Festival is a celebration of Islamic art and culture, featuring talks, performances and exhibitions. Organised by the Ministry of Culture and Knowledge Development, this one-day event opens with a session on the future of Islamic art. With this in mind, it is followed by a number of workshops and “masterclass” sessions in everything from calligraphy and typography to geometry and the origins of Islamic design. There will also be discussions on subjects including ‘Who is the Audience for Islamic Art?’ and ‘New Markets for Islamic Design.’ A live performance from Kuwaiti guitarist Yousif Yaseen should be one of the highlights of the day.
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
((Disclaimer))
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How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
Women%E2%80%99s%20T20%20World%20Cup%20Qualifier
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
WRESTLING HIGHLIGHTS
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
