The Atlas Lion ended his wait for a maiden Purples strike against the Little Eagles in a Serie A encounter
Sofyan Amrabat opened his goal account for Fiorentina in their 2-1 away victory over Spezia in Monday’s Italian elite division outing.
With the game looking destined to end on a no winner, no vanquished note, the Morocco international netted the clincher to hand the Purples all points at stake.
In the process, he ended his wait for a goal since his arrival at the Stadio Artemio Franchi from Belgian top-flight side Club Brugge.
Lifted by their 3-2 triumph at Atalanta in a Coppa Italia fixture on February 10, Vincenzo Italiano’s men travelled to the Stadio Alberto Picco with the ambition of extending their winning streak.
The visitors got off to a flying start and were awarded a penalty by referee Matteo Marchetti in the 15th minute following a rash challenge from Arkadiusz Reca.
Marchetti’s decision was approved by VAR, unfortunately, Krzysztof Piątek missed the ensuing kick after his effort crashed against the post although goalkeeper Ivan Provedel guessed the direction correctly.
Even at that setback, they continued to dictate the pace – dominating ball possession – while their hosts relied on counter-attacks.
Three minutes before the half-time break, Piatek made amends for his early miss by putting Fiorentina ahead with Morocco’s Youssef Maleh supplying the assist.
In the second half, Spezia stepped up their game and attacked in numbers towards restoring parity – but that did not yield dividends.
However, they levelled matters in the 74th minute courtesy of super-sub Kevin Agudelo. The Colombian dispossessed Amrabat on the halfway line, scooted through the opposition’s half before firing the ball past goalkeeper Pietro Terracciano.
A few minutes later, Spezia nearly went ahead courtesy of Ebrima Colley’s shot, albeit, it went a whisker wide of Terracciano’s left post.
Nevertheless, Amrabat had the final say with his 89th-minute strike courtesy of a beautiful low drive from long range to hand the hosts their 13th defeat of the 2021-22 campaign.
“A tough game in a really difficult atmosphere,” Fiorentina chairman Rocco Commisso told the media.
“We managed to get the victory because we never gave up. For Vincenzo, it was not an easy evening, but we came out with our heads held high and with three deserved points.
“I’m happy for Amrabat who made a mistake but also the goal of the victory and for Piatek who scored again. Good guys and thanks to our fans.”
Source: goal
