Verona end long winless run

Lazovic scores both goals in team’s 2-0 home victory over fellow strugglers Cremonese

MILAN:

DarkoLazovic brought Verona their first win since September on Monday with his first-half brace in a 2-0 home victory over fellow strugglers Cremonese.

Verona snapped a 10-match losing streak with last Wednesday's draw at Torino and finally secured three points against a Cremonese team who are still winless after 17 games of their first top-flight campaign since 1996.

Lazovic struck with two neat finishes in the ninth and 26th minutes at the Stadio Bentegodi to continue a post-Christmas revival under new coach Marco Zaffaroni.

Verona are unbeaten in his two games in charge but Serie A safety will be a battle as they sit in the relegation zone on nine points, six behind 17th-placed Spezia.

Cremonese are two points behind Verona and Sampdoria in last place following their 10th defeat of the campaign.

The away side did their pre-match warm-up wearing a T-shirt bearing an image of former Italy striker Gianluca Vialli, who died on Friday of pancreatic cancer at the age of 58.

He started his career at his hometown club Cremonese before going on to greater success at Sampdoria, Juventus and Chelsea.

While the match was being played, back in Cremona Vialli's family, friends and some famous faces from his playing days gathered for a mass in his honour.

Fans who didn't make the trip to Verona stood outside the Cristo Re church in Cremona to pay their respects.

Vialli's funeral will be a small private affair in London, where he lived after signing for Chelsea in 1996 until his death.

Atalanta came from behind to win 2-1 at Bologna in Monday's late game through second-half goals from Teun Koopmeiners and Rasmus Hojlund.

The visitors recovered from falling behind to an early Riccardo Orsolini strike to end a four-match winless run.