Vlašić's Winner Seals Torino's 3-2 Thriller Over Monza as Patterson's Own Goal Comes Too Late

Torino made it three straight wins in all competitions with a 3-2 victory over Monza in Turin, as Rafik Belghali's stunning curler and Nikola Vlašić's 72nd-minute strike survived a stoppage-time own goal from Nathan Patterson.

Vlašić's Winner Seals Torino's 3-2 Thriller Over Monza as Patterson's Own Goal Comes Too Late

Torino edged Monza 3-2 in a Friday-night Serie A thriller at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino, spoiling Ivan Juric's return to his old club and climbing to seventh in the table.

Ignazio Abate's side, fresh from Monday's 3-0 win at Parma, struck six minutes before the break when Kian Fitz-Jim drove into the area to fire home from Giovanni Simeone's pass. Monza levelled within two minutes of the restart through Gustavo Varela's sixth league goal of the season, and briefly held momentum after Rolando Mandragora limped off injured.

But Torino responded in style. Rafik Belghali skipped past two defenders and curled a superb strike from outside the area into the bottom corner on 61 minutes, and Nikola Vlašić fired a loose ball high into the net from the edge of the area in the 72nd to make it 3-1. Monza had a stoppage-time penalty appeal waved away, then snatched a consolation when Nathan Patterson turned the ball into his own net in the 94th minute — too late to matter.

Torino outshot the visitors 17 to 7 and were worth the points. They rise to 13 points and host Como on Tuesday, while Monza stay 14th on seven and face Napoli on Wednesday.