Sassuolo kept biting back, including a spectacular Gianluca Scamacca volley, but Hellas Verona emerged 4-2 winners with Gianluca Caprari’s angled drive and an Antonin Barak hat-trick.
Domenico Berardi was suspended, with Filip Djuricic, Matheus Henrique, Francesco Magnanelli and Hamed Junior Traore among those unavailable for the hosts. Ivan Ilic sat out a ban for Hellas, who were still decimated by COVID cases, but had Lorenzo Montipò and Barak returning.
Montipò risked a red card in the opening five minutes, rushing outside the penalty area and mistiming the intervention on Gianluca Scamacca, but managed to avoid both a foul and handling the ball.
Giovanni Simeone went too wide and could only hit the side-netting, while Gianluca Caprari stung Andrea Consigli’s gloves at the near post.
Verona did have the ball in the net on 16 minutes with a Koray Gunter header on inspired Darko Lazovic pass, but VAR showed the defender was marginally offside.
Sassuolo wasted a double opportunity as Davide Frattesi and Giacomo Raspadori slipped at the crucial moment.
Raspadori attempted an audacious lob from midfield after a Gianluca Scamacca back-heel flick and it was going in until Montipò scrambled back to fingertip it over the bar.
On the resulting corner, Gian Marco Ferrari’s diving header was just off target at the far post.
Verona finally broke the deadlock when Barak controlled the ball with his chest and set up Caprari for a ferocious angled drive from 13 yards. Sassuolo had handball appeals, but VAR examined the footage and ruled Barak used his chest.
Sassuolo fought back immediately, Gunter making the block on a Kyriakopoulos free kick, but Verona doubled their lead in chaotic fashion.
Barak was in the right place at the right time, Maxime Lopez clearing from six yards onto his shin and it ricocheted into the net.
Verona almost made it 3-0 after the restart, on a corner Simeone’s overhead kick was nodded down for Barak to prod inches wide from six yards.
Sassuolo did get back into it with a spectacular volley from Scamacca, who acrobatically turned in the Kyriakopoulos cross from the right with his right boot, almost turned with his back to goal.
It didn’t last long, because Vlad Chiriches foolishly punched the ball off Simeone’s chest for an inevitable penalty. Consigli got a hand to the Barak spot-kick, but couldn’t stop it entering the net anyway.
A Kyriakopoulos curler was palmed round the far post, while Scamacca spun round to smash a strike inches wide.
Sassuolo would not give in and substitute Gregoire Defrel scored within minutes of coming off the bench, allowed a free header on a corner for 3-2.
It was wide open, Marco Davide Faraoni testing Consigli at the near post, the hosts with a series of corners and Rogerio’s snapshot skimming the upright.
However, in stoppages Miguel Veloso’s through ball allowed Barak to spring the offside trap and keep his cool to dink it over the goalkeeper into an empty net for his hat-trick.
Sassuolo 2-4 Verona
Caprari 37 (V), Barak 44, pen 57, 94 (V), Scamacca 54 (S), Defrel 67 (S)
Both teams are great for serie a