The Derby di Sicilia is always a special day on the calendar for every Palermo fan. Sunday’s encounter did not end in a much hoped for Palermo victory, but it did extend the club’s unbeaten run to four matches thanks to Josip Ilicic’s injury time goal to snatch a point at the death for the away side.
The match was not a classic, as both sides cancelled each other out for large parts of the match with a more pragmatic approach being adopted by the two combatants. When Pablo Barrientos gave the Elefanti the lead in the 69th minute, things looked like they were heading for a negative result for our Rosanero side. The goal seemed to suck the life out of Giuseppe Sannino’s men as they struggled to respond to Francesco Lodi and his pinpoint passing which made Palermo reactionary rather than proactive in looking for the equalizer.
In Ilicic We Trust: without the Slovenian, who knows where Palermo would be. In fact, it’s better we dont’t think about that.
When all looked lost, Palermo did what others have done so often to them throughout the course of the season: find a late goal. Stefano Sorrentino lofted a free kick into the penalty area, where the recently returned Abel Hernandez flicked on for Ilicic to score his fourth goal in four matches (which also gives him nine goals this season, the most he’s scored in a single Serie A season).
The result is a positive one considering it is always great to steal a late draw against your most bitter rivals. It was made even more valuable when word of Chievo’s defeat of Siena was made official, leaving the Rosanero only one point behind the Bianconeri.
With five matches remaining, the three horse race is as tight as it’s ever been. Siena sit on 30 points, with Palermo and Genoa only one point behind. In terms of head-to-head results, Siena hold the advantage thanks to two victories and two draws from their fixtures against their relegation rivals. Palermo and Genoa both failed to win a single match, collecting three draws and a defeat. Only time will tell whether this advantage will pay dividends for the Tuscan side, but it is something to keep in mind as the season edges closer towards its grand finale.
Despite this advantage, when looking at the fixture list for all three clubs, it is the consensus that Siena have the hardest encounters to close out the year. When looking at their results from the first half of the season against their next five opponents (Roma, Catania, Fiorentina, Napoli, AC Milan) they failed to pick up a single point, losing all five of those matches. Genoa had the best results, collecting a win and two draws from their matches against Chievo, Pescara, Torino, Inter and Bologna.
What does all this mean for Palermo? It means that despite their recent unbeaten run, there is still much to be done. Their record against their final five opponents (Inter, Juventus, Udinese, Fiorentina, Parma) is not inspiring as their only point came against Udinese. Much has changed since then in terms of player and coaching personnel, along with a long waited improvement in form meaning past results should be considered but ultimately taken with a grain of salt.
The second half of the dynamic duo is set to return on Sunday against Inter. Hopefully he is ready to recapture his red hot form before missing the Catania match
With every passing game, it would appear as though Siena are the biggest threat to Palermo being relegated as they have achieved the best results over the course of the second half of the season. While Genoa have an easier schedule, they have failed to pick up a victory in their past eight matches and owner Enrico Preziosi seems to have crisis talks with his coaching staff on a weekly basis as the Grifone look destine for the drop.
Thus, despite having to play two of Italy’s bigger clubs in the next two matches, there is reason for Palermo fans to have faith. With Ilicic playing the way he has in recent week and Fabrizio Miccoli set to return after scoring four goals against the Allievi in a friendly on Thursday, the overwhelming sense of dread that hung over the squad for so long has definitively been forgotten. Let’s hope it hasn’t all been for nought and that Sannino can work whatever magic he has been brewing from now until May 19th.
Follow Adriano Boin on Twitter: @Boin44
