Totti crosses 200 as Roma and Fiorentina draw
Francesco Totti scored his 200th Serie A goal for Roma on Sunday but it wasn't enough to inspire his team to victory at Fiorentina.
- Agence France-Presse
- Updated: March 20, 2011 08:02 PM IST
Francesco Totti scored his 200th Serie A goal for Roma on Sunday but it wasn't enough to inspire his team to victory at Fiorentina.
Twice the hosts led through Adrian Mutu and Alessandro Gamberini, who scored his first goal since 2007, but Totti netted from the spot and then added his 201st league strike after the break.
One-club man Totti, who is sixth on the all-time Serie A scoring list, just four goals behind Roberto Baggio, said there's plenty more to come.
"The numbers speak of a great career in which I've always wanted to honour the same shirt," he said.
"I'm proud of what I've done but I'm not stopping there. I always try to do my best."
The point did little to help either side's respective ambitions as Roma remain out of the Champions League qualifying places and Fiorentina short of the Europa League spots.
Alberto Gilardino looked to have given Fiorentina the lead on 20 minutes with a goal that was controversially ruled out.
Both he and Mario Santana were in an offside position when the ball was played forward but it was cut out by Nicolas Burdisso.
He, however, then lost the ball to Santana who played in Gilardino to shoot home, both by now having got back on side.
But a linesman's flag saw that chalked off.
It took only another minute, though, for the hosts to take the lead as Philippe Mexes missed the ball and Mutu took on Juan on the outside before shooting home between goalkeeper Doni's legs.
The lead lasted only six minutes before Gianluca Comotto clumsily brought down John Arne Riise in the box, with Totti despatching the resulting penalty to reach the 200 mark.
However, Fiorentina went back in front on 34 minutes when Mutu got his head to a corner ahead of Riise, the ball hitting Simone Perrotta and falling to Gamberini, who had lost marker Juan, to rifle home.
It could have been worse for Roma as Mutu also headed a 38th minute chance against the bar.
And the visitors had another lucky escape five minutes after the restart as Juan Vargas crashed a sublime left-foot volley from Santana's cross against the bar with Doni helpless.
Only two minutes later Roma were level again as everyone missed Riise's cross from the left with Totti finding himself unmarked at the back post and with time enough to control the ball, shift it onto his right foot and thrash home a cross-shot.