Torino 1-0 Grosseto

Torino went three points clear at the top of the Serie B table after a narrow 1-0 victory against Grosseto on Wednesday night.

Toro defender Angelo Ogbonna received some positive news before the game, as he had been called up to the Italy squad by Cesare Prandelli for their Euro 2012 qualification matches after an injury to Domenico Criscito, and he would join up with the squad after this match.

There were a number of changes to the team that beat Sampdoria, with Danilo D'Ambrosio, Kamil Glik, Migjen Basha and Giulio Ebagua all coming into the starting eleven.

The first half was particularly quiet, with Grosseto being content with putting ten men behind the ball and attempting to hit Torino on the counter. Therefore clear cut chances in the first half were limited, with the best chance probably coming from Manuel Iori's teasing free kick, that Kamil Glik failed to make contact with.

In the second half, Grosseto came close to opening the scoring when former Torino midfielder Paulo Zanetti hit a half volley from long range, but Ferdinando Coppola was able to turn around the post.

The turning point of the match occurred with just ten minutes left, when Grosseto substitute Luigi Consonni was sent off for two yellow cards, having just been on the pitch for 23 minutes. And the impact from that dismissal was immediate, as from the resulting free kick, Angelo Iorio headed into his own net to give Torino the lead.

Against Grosseto's ten men, Torino had numerous chances to extend their lead in the closing stages, with Mirco Antenucci, Giulio Ebagua and Manuel Iori all going close. However, the game ended 1-0 and that was enough to give Toro all three points, and put them top of the Serie B table after eight games.

Crotone 1-1 Torino

Torino regained their place in the Serie B playoff positions after a hard fought draw away to Crotone. Torino. who are still without a win since the winter break gave new signing Mirco Antenucci a debut, as Franco Lerda's team lined up in an unfamiliar 4-3-1-2 formation.

After an opening period in which both sides exchanged long ranged efforts, Crotone had an excellent opportunity to open the scoring from the penalty spot, after Paulo Zanetti was harshly penalised for handball mid way through the second half. However, Torino goalkeeper Davide Bassi made a magnificent save as he dived low to his right to save Ciro Ginestra's spot kick. Despite Bassi's heroics, Torino found themselves 1-0 down ten minutes later, after an outstanding curling shot from 20 yards by Aniello Cutolo. Toro levelled soon afterwards though, as they did in the recent away game at Padova, and once again it was Rolando Bianchi who got the breakthrough. Bianchi scored after Crotone goalkeeper Vid Belec was only able to parry Antenucci's shot, and Bianchi was there to capitalise. In fact, Rolando Bianchi is the only Torino player to score in 2011, and this is an issue coach Franco Lerda will be keen to address, and once again it emphasises how important the former Manchester City striker is to the team.

The game finished with the points shared, and Paulo Zanetti's afternoon got worse after he received a second yellow card for dissent after the final whistle, with the midfielder still infuriated by the referee's decision to award Crotone a penalty.