De Gea’s huge saves lift Fiorentina to a tense win over Verona

MILAN (AP) — Fiorentina goalkeeper David De Gea starred with several huge saves to preserve a 1-0 win against Hellas Verona and pull further away from the Serie A relegation zone on Saturday.

The former Manchester United shot-stopper kept his side in the match before teammate Nicolò Fagioli scored the winner eight minutes from time, against the run of play.

Jack Harrison, on loan from Leeds United, got down the right and laid it off for an unmarked Fagioli to fire in off the inside of the right post.

The tension spilled over four minutes later when Verona midfielder Tomas Suslov and Fiorentina counterpart Albert Guðmundsson got into a brawl, leading to both of them getting sent off with ripped jerseys.

Fiorentina spent most of the first half of the season mired to the foot of the table but has lost only two league matches in 2026. It moved to five points above the drop zone.

Verona remained nine points from safety.

Andrea Pinamonti’s sublime strike helped Sassuolo fight back to win 2-1 as Cagliari fumbled a precious lead.

Cagliari, which was only three points above the relegation zone, went in front through a first-half Sebastiano Esposito penalty.

However, Sassuolo leveled five minutes into the second half. A corner was headed clear only as far as Ulisses Garcia outside the area. The defender controlled the ball on his chest before drilling into the bottom right corner for his first goal in Italy after joining from Marseille in February.

And the comeback was completed in the 78th. Pinamonti gathered a ball with his back to goal, turned his defender and slipped the ball through a narrow gap into the bottom left corner.

Elsewhere, Lazio was held to 1-1 by Parma, which inched seven points above the drop zone.

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Cagliari's Sebastiano Esposito celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Cagliari in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)

Cagliari's Sebastiano Esposito scores their side's first goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Cagliari in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)

Sassuolo's Andrea Pinamonti celebrates scoring their side's second goal of the game during the Serie A soccer match between Sassuolo and Cagliari in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)

Fiorentina's Moise Kean, left, and Verona's Andrias Edmundsson in action during the Serie A soccer match between Hellas Verona and Fiorentina in Verona, Italy, Saturday April 4, 2026. (Paola Garbuio/LaPresse via AP)

Fiorentina's Nicolo Fagioli celebrates after scoring during the Italian Serie A soccer match between Hellas Verona and Fiorentina in Verona, Italy, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (Paola Garbuio/LaPresse via AP)

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo celebrated his first Easter Mass as pontiff with a call Sunday to exercise hope against “the violence of war that kills and destroys,’’ saying “we need this song of hope today” as conflicts spread around the world.

With the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in its second month and Russia’s ongoing campaign in Ukraine, Leo has repeatedly called for a halt in hostilities. In his Easter homily, the pope singled out those who wage war, abuse the weak and prioritize profits.

Leo, the first U.S.-born pope, addressed the faithful from an open-air altar in St. Peter’s Square flanked with white roses, while the steps leading down to the piazza where the faithful gathered were filled with spring perennials, symbolically resonating with the pope’s message of hope.

The pontiff implored the faithful to keep their hope in the face of death, which lurks “in injustices, in partisan selfishness, in the oppression of the poor, in the lack of attention given to the most vulnerable.

“We see it in violence, in the wounds of the world, in the cry of pain that rises from every corner because of the abuses that crush the weakest among us, because of the idolatry of profit that plunders the earth’s resources, because of the violence of war that kills and destroys," he said.

He quoted his predecessor Pope Francis in warning against falling into indifference in the face of “persistent injustice, evil, indifference and cruelty," because “it is also true that in the midst of darkness, something new always springs to life and sooner or later produces fruit.”

He will later deliver the traditional “Urbi et Orbi” message — Latin for “to the city and the world.’’

Traditional ceremonies at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, revered by Christians as the traditional site of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, were scaled back under an agreement with Israeli police. Authorities have put limits on the sizes of public gatherings due to ongoing missile attacks.

The restrictions also dampened the recent Muslim holy month of Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr holiday, as well as the current weeklong Jewish festival of Passover. On Sunday, the Jewish priestly blessing at the Western Wall — normally attended by tens of thousands — was limited to just 50 people.

The restrictions have strained relations between Israeli authorities and Christian leaders. Police last week prevented two of the church’s top religious leaders, including Latin Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa, from celebrating Palm Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

On Tuesday, the pope had expressed hope that the war could be finished before Easter.

Barry reported from Milan. Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed.

Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Clergy follow Pope Leo XIV as he presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Leo XIV presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Leo XIV arrives to preside over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026 (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Pope Leo XIV sprinkles holy water with a bunch of hyssop sprigs as he presides over Easter Mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, April 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)