Torino sliding into crisis

Torino are facing difficult times as the derby setback at the hands of Juventus last weekend saw them slipping to their fourth defeat of the season and in the lower rungs of the league ladder.

As in their previous three outings (vs Lazio 1-3, Udinese 0-2 and Cagliari 0-1), Torino showed glimpses of a revival and tried hard to pep up their play. The same happened on Saturday but, unfortunately for them, the best scoring opportunities were created by back-to-form Juventus.

For the Bianconeri the derby success was their second straight 'three-pointer' following a narrow, but significant, home win over Real Madrid in the Champions League in midweek.

Saturday night's upset has left Torino in bottom place in the Serie A, level on points with Reggina. They have only five points to show from their first eight outings.

Tonight, Torino are at home to Atalanta. This is a make-or-break phase for Gianni De Biasi's side. Failure to win this match could cost the coach his job even though club supremo Urbano Cairo said De Biasi will not be sacked.

Way back in summer, Torino could not have aspired for a brighter start as they annihilated newcomers Lecce 3-0 at home on Day One. However, from then on, Torino misfired badly and only managed two identical 1-1 draws at Reggina and Chievo.

Indeed, the fans expected more from a side that boast the talents of Alessandro Rosina, Nicola Amoruso, Rolando Bianchi, Eugenio Corini and Matteo Sereni.

Some critics of the game contend Torino's problems lie in attack. The average of scoring chances that the Toro strikers failed to conclude per game is astonishing.

With the arrival of Amoruso and Bianchi, Torino thought that their problems were something of the past. But the two former Reggina forwards have yet to leave their mark as, to date, they have only managed two goals each. Torino have not scored a single goal in their last three outings.

However, in my opinion, the team's blunt forward line is not the only worry for De Biasi as his midfield is not offering enough cover to the backline, thus rendering the team weak in defence.

Perhaps, it is also a matter of lack in consistency as it has become the norm for Torino to concede a goal when least expected. This happened to them very often lately.

It is indeed worrying for Torino to be in such an awkward position so early in the season as the team deserves better, at least for the commitment shown on the field.

Take the game against Cagliari for instance. Torino dominated from start to finish and created plenty of chances but to no avail.

Towards the end of the game, Cagliari found the back of the net in their only attempt at goal in the entire game. It was the Sardinia team's first win away at Torino in over 15 years.

After eight games last season, Torino, then under Walter Novellino, had figured somewhat better and collected eight points.

Eventually, they only made sure of survival towards the end of the campaign. So, Torino need to rediscover their winning touch fast. This time, the road to safety appears more difficult... competition to stay afloat looks to be fierce once again.

Serie A statistics

1st home defeat for Palermo after three successive wins (vs Roma 3-1, Genoa 2-1 and Reggina 1-0) as they were comprehensively beaten by Fiorentina. For the winners, this was a fourth league win on the trot following victories against Genoa 1-0, Chievo 2-0 and Reggina 3-0. Roma's worst start in many a year continued following a 1-3 drubbing at joint-leaders Udinese. Roma have now lost all of their opening four away fixtures... vs Palermo 1-3, Genoa 1-3, Siena 0-1 and Udinese 1-3. The northeasterners are unbeaten in their last six outings (four wins and two draws). Sunday's win was Udinese's first home success over Roma since February 23, 2003 (2-1).

3 draws and four defeats are all newcomers Chievo have to show from their last seven outings. On Sunday, the Verona outfit were floored by a resurgent Cagliari side in Sardinia. Cagliari's second straight win coincided with Chievo's first defeat at the Sant'Elia stadium since December 5, 2004 (2-4). In a basement clash, Reggina had the upperhand against a toothless Lecce side. It was Lecce's third successive game without a win. Lecce have last conquered Reggio Calabria on January 18, 2004 (3-1).

4th straight defeat (vs Lazio 1-3, Udinese 0-2, Cagliari 0-1 and Juventus 0-1) for struggling Torino as they were undone by an Amauri second-half strike to extend their winless run to seven games (two draws and five defeats). Torino's most recent win in a derby hosted by Juventus came on April 9, 1995 (2-1). If a year ago, Inter annihilated Genoa 4-1 at the San Siro, this time around they could not go beyond a 0-0 draw. This was the only goalless draw of the day. For the record, Genoa's latest win in Milan dates back to March 27, 1994 (3-1).

5 penalties were taken last weekend. Bernardo Corradi put an end to Reggina's winless start by ably transforming two second-half spot-kicks. Udinese striker Antonio Di Natale scored from a 10th-minute penalty to give his side a headstart against Roma. Later on in the same game, Francesco Totti scored his first goal of the season by finding the back of the net from a penalty. Against Siena, Giuseppe Mascara grabbed a vital equaliser for Catania from the spot. Meanwhile, only one player, Genoa's Ivan Juric, received marching orders. With 15 goals against, Roma possess the worst defensive record in the division.

7 years had to pass for Napoli to conquer Lazio's Olympic stadium as the Partenopei cruised to their second away win of the season. Lazio created several scoring chances worth of note but in the end, Napoli's willpower prevailed. This was Lazio's first home defeat of the term. Sampdoria scored two goals after the break to register their first win of the season. Bologna have last won at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium on March 29, 1998 (3-2). Bologna and Palermo are still to figure in a draw this season.

19 goals were scored on the eighth day. Foreigners contributed with five goals while there were 14 second-half goals. Total number of goals scored so far is 180. Lazio's Sebastiano Siviglia committed the only own goal of the day. Adrian Mutu (Fiorentina), Antonio Di Natale (Udinese) and Bernardo Corradi (Reggina) scored a brace each. Two players, namely Giuseppe Mascara (Catania) and Emanuele Calaio (Siena), came on as substitutes and scored. Alberto Gilardino's controversial goal in Palermo propelled him to the summit of the scorers' list with seven goals.