FLORENCE, Italy, March 22 (Reuters) - Inter Milan were held to a 1-1 draw at Fiorentina on Sunday as the hosts' Cher Ndour scored a second-half equaliser to cancel out Francesco Pio Esposito’s first-minute opener and dent the visitors' Serie A title charge.
Following AC Milan’s 3-2 victory over Torino on Saturday, the result in Florence trimmed Inter’s lead at the summit to six points, leaving the leaders on 69 points with eight matches remaining and offering fresh hope to their city rivals.
"We knew the three points were crucial for us, and Fiorentina deserve credit, but we didn't play our best game, and it's not our best moment. But it's all in our hands," said Inter assistant coach Aleksandar Kolarov.
“They (Fiorentina) have been on good form recently, so I see a point here as relatively positive," he added, stepping in for suspended manager Cristian Chivu.
INSTANT INTER GOAL
Inter needed 39 seconds to make their intent clear, capitalising on a botched clearance that allowed Nicolo Barella to whip in a cross from the byline for Esposito to head home from close range.
Both sides traded chances in an open first half and each had a strike ruled out for offside before the interval. Barella was denied for the visitors, as was Fiorentina’s Moise Kean, who also had several other opportunities to level the score that went begging before the break.
While the second half lacked fluency, Fiorentina grew increasingly dominant, with Kean acting as the primary engine for the hosts.
Fiorentina’s second-half persistence finally told 13 minutes from time when Inter keeper Yann Sommer could only parry Albert Gudmundsson’s low drive into the path of an unmarked Ndour, who tapped home the equaliser.
Buoyed by a vocal home crowd and sensing an upset, Fiorentina continued to press, with Jack Harrison dragging a shot just wide of the post minutes later.
In the dying seconds, Inter almost snatched a winner when Esposito controlled a cross with his back to goal, turned under pressure and fired a goalbound effort, only for Fiorentina keeper David de Gea to produce a superb reaction save.
The result also provided a small cushion for Fiorentina, who gained a point in their fight for survival. The draw leaves them 16th on 29 points, two clear of 18th-placed Lecce in the final relegation spot.
“Changing objective to fighting relegation is tough to handle, especially in such a demanding environment as Florence," Fiorentina manager Paolo Vanoli told DAZN.
"We put in a great performance, and I also congratulate the entire staff. It was tough against a physical team that had had a week to prepare. We could have tied it in the first half, but this year the ball just doesn't go in."
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in GdanskEditing by Toby Davis)
