Torino 1 Roma 1: Last-gasp Lopez penalty earns hosts a point

Torino were grateful to a stoppage-time penalty from Maxi Lopez as they salvaged a 1-1 draw with Roma in a dramatic finale in Serie A on Saturday.

The Argentinian came off the bench midway through the second half at the Stadio Olimpico, and saw his side fall behind to Miralem Pjanic’s free-kick seven minutes from time.

But just when it seemed Roma would seal their first win in three games, Kostas Manolas brought down Andrea Belotti inside the area and Lopez coolly converted the 94th-minute spot-kick.

In a game of few chances, the most notable action in the opening 80 minutes saw Roma attacker Gervinho – back after almost three weeks out with a thigh injury – limp out of the action with what looked to be a recurrence of the same problem.

All the drama arrived in the final 10 minutes, as Roma took the lead when Pjanic curled a free-kick into a dangerous area, which eluded Torino goalkeeper Daniele Padelli, bounced into the turf and into the top-right corner.

But Torino were not to be beaten and after Manolas felled Belotti, Lopez calmly sent Wojciech Szczesny the wrong way to earn his side a point.