Dybala returns for Roma but can't find victory

Both Lazio and champions Milan, who host Fiorentina at the San Siro, can take the end-of-year gap between them and Napoli to eight points with wins in their respective matches.

Unhappy Dybala

Paulo Dybala made his first Roma appearance in over a month but it was not a happy return for the Argentina forward despite proving his fitness for the World Cup, as his team drew 1-1 with Torino. Dybala came on with 20 minutes remaining at the Stadio Olimpico with Roma trailing to Karol Linetty's 55th minute header and made an almost immediate impact. 

The 28-year-old won a stoppage-time penalty which former Torino captain Andrea Belotti smashed off the post. Seconds later Nemanja Matic thumped in a long-range leveller after Dybala's curling shot crashed off the bar. "I would have liked to have come on earlier but it wasn't possible," said Dybala, who last injured himself taking a penalty and let Belotti have a go from the spot.

"Belotti felt like taking it, so I let him. There wasn't any problem there. He's a striker who's scored a lot of goals, and anyone can miss a penalty." Jose Mourinho's side sit seventh, three points behind Inter in the race for the Champions League spots after another stodgy performance.

"There were two games today, one that ended in the 70th minute... and then the last twenty minutes, where we probably created more than in the last 4-5 games combined," said Mourinho, who was sent off late on. "We are a limited team. When a player like Dybala isn't playing it's different."

Dragowski's injury nightmare

Poland international goalkeeper Bartlomiej Dragowski suffered a reported broken ankle in Spezia's 2-1 win at rock-bottom Verona which has almost certainly means him missing the World Cup. Dragowski was in Poland's squad for the Qatar tournament but he had to be stretchered from the Stadio Bentegodi field in tears three minutes before half-time after trying to tackle Kevin Lasagna.

The 25-year-old has two caps for his country and would have been behind fellow Italy-based keepers Wojciech Szczesny and Lukasz Skorupski in the pecking order for Poland. Spezia were behind to Simone Verdi's strike when Dragowski was substituted but Mbala Nzola's first goals away from home this season moved his team six clear of the relegation zone and condemned Verona to their 10th straight defeat. Monza thumped Salernitana 3-0 to extend the gap between them and the bottom three nine points.