Juventus survive a scare

But Juventus only exploited that numerical superiority in the dying moments of regulation time when substitute Darko Kovacevic snatched a priceless goal, nodding in a cross from wingback Gianluca Pessotto.

The Yugoslav striker, bought from Real Sociedad last summer and the scorer of 10 goals in Juventus’ UEFA Cup campaign, had replaced Filippo Inzaghi on the hour.

Certainty of victory for the Turin giants came only in the fifth minute of stoppage time, with an own goal by Bologna defender Massimo Paganin, as he tried to block the path of Zinedine Zidane.

The win, which left them top with 62 points to Lazio’s 59, was crucial to Juventus’ title hopes — their previous nine-point lead having evaporated after consecutive defeats to AC Milan and Lazio.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti said: “The fact that we had to win at all costs had a big impact on the way we played. These are three extremely important points, given that we were coming off two defeats.

Lazio, meanwhile, lost skipper Alessandro Nesta just before half-time with a minor flare-up of a thigh injury which has kept him out for three weeks. He should play next weekend but will miss Wednesday’s Italian Cup final first-leg with Inter.

Lombardo notched Lazio’s winner three minutes after the re-start. Defender Giuseppe Pancaro crossed from the left, Fabrizio Ravanelli’s header was parried by the keeper and Lombardo right-footed home the loose ball.

Lazio coach Sven Goran Eriksson said: “We did our duty, we won. And that was the important thing.

“Certainly, though, we missed a lot of chances and that shouldn’t happen again — because sometimes you end up paying for them.”

Shrugging off Juventus’ win, he added: “I still believe, and so do the rest of the team, that we can win the league. From now on, we have to win all our matches — each of the five games we have left will be like a final.”

His only disappointment was the scheduling of next weekend’s games — which many believe could see Juventus’ lead reduced or erased completely. Lazio are away to Fiorentina on Saturday while Juventus face Inter on the Sunday night, already knowing the Lazio result.

“I honestly believe that it would be fairer if both teams played on the same day,” Eriksson said.

Behind the top two sides, who are assured of a place in the Champions League first round next season, another battle is being fought for Italy’s two slots in the preliminary rounds of the competition.

Four teams are involved — Milan and Parma, both on 50 points, Inter Milan (49) and AS Roma (47).

Milan, though enjoying most of the possession in a rainswept night match at San Siro, had to come from behind to salvage a draw against Fiorentina, who were without skipper Gabriel Batistuta and playmaker Manuel Rui Costa.

Fiorentina’s Angelo di Livio scored a well-worked goal in the 71st minute after Predrag Mijatovic led a breakaway down the middle. He flicked the ball left to the unmarked Di Livio, who curled it into the top right-hand corner.

But Milan came up with an equaliser five minutes later.

Brazilian substitute Leonardo broke into the area, lost possession but got a boot in front of Czech defender Tomas Repka’s clearance — the ball ricocheting back past keeper Francesco Toldo into the net.

Among the other Champions League hopefuls, Parma’s run of five wins ended on Saturday with a 2-2 draw with Torino, while Inter were thumped 3-0 by Udinese.

Roma’s disappointing run of form continued as they finished up 0-0 at Lecce on Sunday — adding two consecutive draws to a run of three defeats. Roma coach Fabio Capello was once again left cursing Italy’s goalkeepers.

Down in the relegation zone, bottom club Piacenza notched only their fourth victory of the season as they beat Bari 2-1, Verona defeated Cagliari 1-0 and Reggina edged Venezia by the same scoreline.