Inter Milan will have thrown away the Italian Scudetto in spectacular fashion if Roma wins and the Nerazzurri draw or lose in the decisive final round of Serie A matches next Sunday. All Inter needed was a win against lowly Siena to secure a third successive league title, but it wasn’t meant to be: Roberto Mancini’s men twice blew the lead before Marco Materazzi pushed and shoved his way into taking and missing one of the poorest penalties to win a Scudetto that you will ever see.
Meanwhile, second-place Roma cut Inter’s lead to one point with a thoroughly professional 2-1 home triumph against Atalanta. As ever, Roma coach Luciano Spalletti downplayed his side’s chances of stealing the title. “Now we’ve got a 2 percent chance of winning the Scudetto,” the Roma coach said. Of course, that was before Juventus handed Parma a relegation lifeline.
Indeed, like any good season finale, next Sunday’s plotlines extend beyond Serie A’s top two. Alessandro Del Piero’s last-gasp goal for Juventus against Catania Calcio gives Parma absolutely everything to play for when it hosts Inter on Sunday, because a win and a Catania loss would save the Ducali from relegation. A victory would also be doubly sweet for Parma’s Hector Cuper, the former Inter coach who was held responsible for the Nerazzurri’s infamous 4-2 collapse on the final day of the 2001-02 season, a result that handed Juve the title. Meanwhile, 17th-place Catania’s final test will be no easier than Parma’s, as it hosts an equally motivated opponent in — yep — Roma.