Ahmed Hegazy made it to Fiorentina’s bench for the first time since his comeback from injury as the Viola lost 3-4 against Sassuolo in a thrilling encounter.
The Egyptian international returned to the squad after being out of action since the start of the season due to another tear in his ACL in September, but he didn’t take part in his team’s loss on Tuesday night at the Artemio Franchi.
The very promising Domenico Berardi opened the scoresheet for Sassuolo from the penalty spot. Berardi stepped up and sent Fiorentina’s goalkeeper Rosati the wrong way to put Sassuolo in front.
The visitors kept on their high pressure, as Nicola Sansone sent a ball to Berardi who’ve beaten Rosati for the second time by a low drive to make it 0-2.
Berardi completed his hat-trick three minutes before the break when Fiorentina conceded possession in their own area to allow the young forward a simple finish.
In the second half, Joaquin came off the bench for Fiorentina and within 120 seconds had earned a penalty, tripped by Alessandro Longhi. Centre-back Gonzalo Rodriguez took the spot-kick and sent Pegolo the wrong way to pull one back.
After they showed signs of a comeback, Sansone frustrated the hosts when he tricked his way past two men in the box and finished the ball in the Viola’s net.
Giuseppe Rossi made his first appearance in Serie A since January and didn’t need long time to make his impact as he went into the box after a give-and-go with Borja Valero and side-footed the finish into the near bottom corner. Juan Cuadrado scored a third goal for Fiorentina to make it a nervy finish for Sassuolo but they managed to clinch three huge points.
