Shevchenko's last-minute goal keeps Milan on pace for title
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-03-29 14:22

The end result was a draw, but AC Milan's late two-goal comeback against Chievo on Sunday felt like a victory.

Trailing 2-0 for most of the match, the Serie A leader battled back for a 2-2 draw with an 80th-minute goal by Andrea Pirlo and an equalizer by Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko - his league-leading 20th goal - seven minutes into second-half injury time.

AC Milan's Andriy Shevchenko, left, of Ukraine, is hugged by his teammate Paolo Maldini after scoring, during their Italian first division soccer match between AC Milan and Chievo at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, Sunday, March 28, 2004. The game ended in a 2-2 draw. [AP]

The San Siro crowd was nearly silent after Chievo took a two-goal lead before halftime. Long after the final whistle, however, fans were still waving their Ukrainian flags with "Shevchenko" printed on them in every corner of the stadium.

Combined with Juventus' 3-1 win against Modena - in which French striker David Trezeguet scored twice - and AS Roma's lackadaisical 2-1 loss to Bologna at home, the European champion ended the day with limited damage in the standings and an excellent chance of wrapping up its 17th league title with a few rounds to spare.

With 68 points and seven rounds remaining, Milan holds a nine-point edge on Juventus (59) and an 11-point gap ahead of Roma (57). Juve's win moved it ahead of Roma into second-place, although Roma has played one match fewer.

"This draw is worth a victory for how it came about," Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "We were having a bad day and we obtained a tough result. To improve our standing on a day like this is a very important sign."

Chievo striker Giuseppe Sculli was left wide open in the centre of the area to put the Verona squad ahead in the 22nd and national team midfielder Simone Perrotta doubled the visitors' advantage in the 39th minute by dribbling past Milan captain Paolo Maldini and beating Brazilian goalkeeper Dida with a strong shot.

Pirlo, also a national team midfielder, began Milan's comeback with a long, accurate shot from beyond 20 meters that Chievo 'keeper Luca Marchegiani had no chance of stopping.

Referee Gianluca Paparesta originally called for five minutes of injury time, then extended the game for another couple minutes when Marchegiani went down to the ground with a late injury.

Ancelotti began the game with Shevchenko on the bench, hoping to give his star striker some much needed rest with the club still involved in the Champions League.

Faced with a two-goal deficit, however, Ancelotti decided to substitute Shevchenko for Danish striker Jon Dahl Tomasson and exchange Portuguese midfielder Manuel Rui Costa for Dutchman Clarence Seedorf at halftime.

The moved paid off 47 minutes later when Rui Costa sent a long cross to the centre of the area and Shevchenko outjumped everyone to send one of his trademark headers past Marchegiani.

"There were five seconds remaining, Paparesta told me when I asked just before Rui Costa's cross," Chievo coach Luigi Del Neri said.

Shevchenko said Milan "gave up too much" early on.

"But once again we were able to come back," he said a few minutes after his goal avoided Milan's second loss of the season. "There are still many matches to play. You can never give up."

In Turin, Juventus went ahead on midfielder Enzo Maresca's 57th-minute header off a Mauro Camoranesi corner. Trezeguet made it 2-0 with another header off a Camoranesi corner. Modena striker Massimo Marazzina cut the lead in half with a 67th-minute header off a free kick and Trezeguet converted his second goal in the 84th minute off a nice setup from Czech midfielder Pavel Nedved.

Roma's already nightmarish week worsened with a below-par performance against Bologna.

Fabio Pecchia put Bologna ahead 26 minutes in with an angled shot on a play that began with a free kick by Japanese midfielder Hidetoshi Nakata. Roma equalized with a close-range goal by Antonio Cassano in the 33rd minute and Croatian striker Igli Tare scored the match winner in the 78th minute on a header when Roma defender Christian Panucci left him unmarked inside the area.

"In the first half we missed a few easy chances, the second half was unacceptable," Roma coach Fabio Capello said.

A week earlier, Roma had its derby match against Lazio suspended when a false rumour that a boy had been killed by police outside the stadium caused mass havoc. Both teams face possible homefield suspensions from the incident. On Thursday, Roma was eliminated from the UEFA Cup by Spain's Villarreal. Additionally, questions about the club's shaky finances have dominated local news coverage all week.

Elsewhere Sunday, Inter Milan won 2-0 at Reggina behind an early own-goal and a late tally by newly signed Brazilian striker Adriano; Lazio remained tied with Parma for fourth place (44 points) with a 2-1 victory in Perugia courtesy of Giuliano Giannichedda's 58th-minute match-winner; and Parma crushed Empoli 4-0 behind two goals from Italy's Under-21 national team star Alberto Gilardino.

Also, Brescia's Roberto Baggio was honoured before his first home match since scoring his 200th goal and then added two more tallies in a 5-2 win against last place Ancona; Ivory Coast import Axel Konan equalized in the 90th minute of Lecce's 2-2 draw at Sampdoria; and Siena's towering Norwegian international Tore Andre Flo scored six minutes into Siena's 1-0 win against Udinese.

All nine Round 27 matches were played simultaneously Sunday to accommodate national team play later in the week. Italy plays a friendly at Portugal on Wednesday.

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