Presents turn to red cards for Atalanta
A festive prematch gesture of panettone between the two sides did not seem to have any sportsmanship like effect on the match, Fabrizio Pasqua handing out two red cards to Nicolo Cherubin and Jasmin Kurtic of Atalanta.
The Nerazzuri were found to be comfortable in their own half with the home side testing Marco Sportiello on a number of occasions and ultimately finding a way past through his legs after saving a penalty only minutes earlier.
Three in a row for Empoli
The Azzuri have returned to the top-half of the table for the first time in nine seasons on the back of three wins in a row and now sit only one point behind an inconsistent Milan.
The veteran Massimo Maccarone and promising youngster Riccardo Saponara lead the way, the former scoring a brace and Saponara sealing the 3-0 win, where the home side held a dominant 66% of the possession.
This result cements Carpi into the relegation zone needing two wins to escape and hosting Juventus in the last match before the Christmas break.
Ordinary Milan returns as Luca Toni finds the net
The Rossoneri seem to be the tale of two teams, in which week-to-week one never knows which side will show up on the pitch. This week the fans saw the return of the poor Milan, the one with no apparent will to win the hard tackles, no will to create positive movement forward and undisciplined acts.
Luca Toni managed to give the Milan defenders some headaches and at times forced Gigi Donnarumma into saves, but he ultimately hit the scoresheet when Nigel De Jong was sent-off for tripping Leandro Greco in the box, handing Verona a penalty.
The pressure is now on for Milan to travel to Frosinone and get maximum points before the Christmas break.
4 – Luca Toni has scored 9 goals in 17 Serie A appearances vs AC Milan, 4 in the last 4 for him vs the Rossoneri. Sentence
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) December 13, 2015
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