Torino survived a late fightback to claim a 2-1 win over Palermo in their Serie A meeting this afternoon, despite finishing the match with nine men.
Fabio Quagliarella threatened in the opening minutes for the hosts, but his attempt from the edge of the box lacked enough power to trouble Stefano Sorrentino.
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The striker then appeared to be bundled over inside the box by Abdel El Kaoutari, but the referee waved away his appeals for a penalty.
With five minutes of the first half remaining Aleksandar Trajkovski came within inches of giving Palermo the lead, but his long-range free kick crashed off the bar.
It seemed as if the teams would head into the break on level terms, but in the 44th minute Torino broke the deadlock as Giancarlo Gonzalez could only turn the ball into his own net under pressure from Maxi Lopez.
Within three minutes of the second half the hosts doubled their lead as Marco Benassi latched onto a ball over the top from Lopez, before crashing a first-time volley beyond the keeper and into the far corner.
Palermo were struggling to come up with a response, but their chances of getting something from the match were boosted as Cristian Molinaro was sent off for Torino for picking up a second yellow card.
The visitors soon managed to pull a goal back as Gonzalez rose to meet a cross from Franco Vazquez, before directing a header in off the post.
Torino then found themselves down to nine men when Joel Obi was shown a straight red card in the final minute.
Palermo continued to put their opponents under pressure, and in the third minute of stoppage time Aljaz Struna headed against the bar, but it would prove to be their final chance as Torino held on to claim the points.
Alex Meyers
