Chievo goalkeeper Albano Bizzarri belied his 37 years to pull off a string of fine saves to thwart former club Lazio in a 0-0 draw on Saturday in the Italian soccer league.
The result leaves Lazio, who have just a point from their past three matches, in sixth place in Serie A, 12 points behind leaders and champions Juventus who face Torino on Sunday in the Turin derby.
Chievo are unbeaten in four matches and their hard-earned point keeps them just above the relegation zone.
Argentine Bizzarri spent four seasons at Lazio from 2009-13 as reserve goalkeeper and he showed his former employers his reflexes were as sharp as ever.
He denied Antonio Candreva, Filip Djordjevic and two attempts from Marco Parolo in the first half and then kept out Stefano Mauri in the 72nd minute as well as saving a last-minute header from Stefan De Vrij.
"Every point we win is like battling for our lives," Bizzarri told Sky Sport.
"We suffered. We wanted to win because a point doesn't really help us. However, we were playing against a very good team."
Chievo have yet to lose when Bizzarri has played but the veteran says it is a coincidence.
"It's just luck. We are a compact team and, if we keep playing like this, we will get there."
Chievo had only one decent chance on goal but Mariano Izco put a 62nd-minute drive into the side-netting.
Sassuolo extended their unbeaten run to seven matches by coming from behind to beat Hellas Verona 2-1.
The victory moves Sassuolo into the top half of the Serie A table in ninth place, one point ahead of Inter Milan.
Verona, who had their winless streak extended to seven matches following a strong start to the season, remained 13th.
Greek defender Vangelis Moras put Verona ahead seven minutes in with a header off a corner, Nicola Sansone equalised in the 50th minute from the edge of the area and Algeria midfielder Saphir Taider tapped in the winner in the 78th after being set up by Antonio Floro Flores.
AFP-AP