MX23RW : Tuesday, May 28 21:17:38| >> :120:85686:85686:
[monks data]
Attendance: 34,379
Fiorentina logo
Serie A
Mar 11, 2018 at 11.30am UK
 
Benevento logo

1-0

Hugo (25')
FT(HT: 1-0)

Fiorentina beat Benevento in emotional Davide Astori tribute match

Fiorentina pay tribute to Astori in Benevento clash
© Offside
Fiorentina pay tribute to Davide Astori in Sunday's 1-0 win over Benevento, the Viola's first game since their captain's tragic death.

Fiorentina have secured a 1-0 win over Benevento in the club's first match since the tragic passing of Davide Astori.

The Viola captain and Italy international died in his sleep last Saturday, which led to an outpouring of grief from the football community.

The 31-year-old's teammates wore 'Astori 13' shirts as they entered the Stadio Artemio Franchi field to a standing ovation in Sunday's Serie A home game.

Flags and banners were displayed throughout the stadium bearing Astori's name, and in the 13th minute of the game, the ball was kicked out of play and the action paused so fans and players could join in a minute's applause.

After the game resumed, Fiorentina striker Giovanni Simeone went clear on goal after latching on to a through-ball and drew a save from Benevento goalkeeper Christian Puggioni.

The breakthrough came in the 25th minute courtesy of Vitor Hugo, the man who replaced Astori in the Viola lineup and scored his first ever goal for the Florence outfit.

The 26-year-old - whose shirt number is 31 - headed home a Riccardo Saponara corner and celebrated his maiden Fiorentina goal by running to the bench and saluting an image of the club captain.

Puggioni then kept out a Saponara effort, while Viola keeper Marco Sportiello smothered a Cristiano Lombardi strike at the near post.

Benevento, who sit bottom of the Serie A table, enjoyed several attempts to draw level and hit the post late on through a Massimo Coda effort.

In the end, however, Hugo's header proved to be the difference between the two sides on a day when football seemed to matter little.

FIORENTINA (4-3-3): Sportiello; Milenkovic (Laurini 58'), Pezzella, Hugo, Biraghi; Benassi, Badelj, Veretout; Saponara (Gil Dias 57'); Chiesa, Simeone (Falcinelli 84')

BENEVENTO (4-2-3-1): Puggioni; Sagna, Djimsiti, Tosca, Venuti; Djuricic (Parigini 81'), Cataldi; Lombardi (Diabate 73'), Guilherme, Brignola (Del Pinto 46'); Coda

ID:320646: cacheID:320646:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:3731:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Davide Astori black and white P1 image
Read Next:
Fiorentina, Benevento to remember Astori
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CInter Milan38297289226794
2AC Milan38229776492775
3Juventus381914554312371
4Atalanta BCAtalanta372161070393169
5Bologna381814654322268
6Roma381891165461963
7Lazio381871349391061
8Fiorentina371691258441457
9Napoli381314115548753
10Torino381314113636053
11Genoa381213134545049
12Monza381112153951-1245
13Hellas VeronaHellas Verona38911183851-1338
14Lecce38814163254-2238
15Udinese38619133753-1637
16Empoli3899202954-2536
17CagliariCagliari38812184268-2636
RFrosinoneFrosinone38811194469-2535
RSassuoloSassuolo3879224375-3230
RSalernitana38211253281-4917


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!