MILAN: Carlos Tevez confirmed he will not be taking over free kick duties from Juventus specialist Andrea Pirlo despite scoring from his first Serie A setpiece on Monday during a 1-1 draw with Roma.
With Pirlo out for three weeks due to a calf injury, Tevez stepped up for a free kick just after the hour mark of the top-of-the-table clash at Roma's Stadio Olimpico.
To general surprise, the Argentinian curled his effort over the wall superbly, leaving Roma goalkeeper Morgan De Sanctis rooted to the spot as Juventus took a 1-0 lead.
Ten-man Roma, who lost Vasilis Torosidis to a red card minutes earlier, went on to level through Seydou Keita's late header from Juan Iturbe's free kick, allowing the hosts to grab a share of the spoils as Juventus maintained their nine-point advantage at the top of the table.
Tevez, meanwhile, said: "I train alongside Pirlo every day and try to copy the things he does. He still has priority on the free kicks!
"He is the specialist and I have to respect that."
Tevez's 15th goal of the campaign means the Argentinian international took the sole lead in the race for Serie A's 'Capocannoniere' award, given to the league's top scorer.
Compatriot Mauro Icardi of Inter Milan, a reported target for Chelsea, has hit the net 14 times this season while two other Argentinians -- Paulo Dybala of Palermo and Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain -- are third and fourth on 12 goals apiece.
Juventus, meanwhile, return to action Thursday when they host Fiorentina in the first leg of the Italian Cup semi-finals in Turin. Lazio host Napoli in the first leg of the other semi-final on Wednesday.
Comments
Comments are closed.