Atalanta reach scoring milestone, coaches in furious row

Gasperini's side took their tally to 95 goals, the highest by any side in a single season for more than 60 years

MILAN:

Atalanta took their Serie A tally to 95 goals, the highest by any side in a single season for more than 60 years, when they beat Bologna 1-0 on Tuesday in a match featuring a furious row between the two coaches.

Halftime substitute Luis Muriel scored the only goal in the 62nd minute to extend Atalanta's unbeaten run in Serie A to 15 games and take them second on 74 points with three matches left.

However, they are six behind leaders Juventus, who have a game in hand and are poised to claim the title. Inter Milan, who host Fiorentina on Wednesday, are third with 72.

The previous side to score 95 goals were Fiorentina in 1958/59 while Atalanta are still well short of Torino's all-time record of 125 set in 1947/48.

Tempers flared in the first half when Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini complained to the referee about a Bologna player and was hailed with expletives by his opposite number Sinisa Mihajlovic.

With no spectators in the stadium, Mihajlovic's obscene outburst was captured by microphones and broadcast to viewers around the world. Both men were booked and Gasperini was then sent off for continuing to remonstrate with officials.

Bologna, who were thumped 5-1 by AC Milan in their previous outing to Mihajlovic's fury, had the best effort of the opening period when Musa Barrow's curling free kick smacked the bar.

The Gambian was again close on the hour when he side-footed over after Takehiro Tomiyasu pulled the ball back, but Atalanta scored in their next attack.

Timothy Castagne's cross into the area found Duvan Zapata who laid it off for his fellow Colombian Muriel to fire into the net and extend 10th-placed Bologna's winless run to five games.