Gustavo Varela scored twice as Monza secured their first Serie A win of the season with a 2-1 victory over Sassuolo at the U-Power Stadium on Friday.
Monza, who had collected just one point from their opening four matches, started brightly and created several opportunities in the opening stages.
Sassuolo goalkeeper Arijanet Muric was called into action repeatedly, while debutant Noel Törnqvist also produced important saves to keep the hosts and visitors level.
Patrick Cutrone came close to breaking the deadlock after combining with Varela, but his effort was blocked.
Monza eventually took the lead six minutes after the restart when Varela headed home from a corner, with Muric unable to hold the ball.
The hosts doubled their advantage in the 63rd minute after Dany Mota Carvalho was brought down inside the area by Sebastiano Esposito.
Varela stepped up and converted the resulting penalty to complete his brace.
Sassuolo refused to give up and reduced the deficit two minutes after the hour mark when Vasilije Adžić curled a free-kick into the far top corner in the 88th minute.
The visitors pushed for an equaliser during stoppage time, but Kieron Bowie’s header from an Adžić cross struck the top of the far post as Monza held on for all three points.
The result ended Monza’s difficult start to the campaign, while Sassuolo suffered a setback after taking seven points from their previous three league matches, including a 3-2 win over Juventus.
