Sampdoria defeated Torino on Sunday, and although it wasn’t a stylish performance, it was another Blucerchiati performance of substance.
Doria defeated Toro 2-0 at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin and although there were doubts on Stefano Okaka’s goal, there were no doubts when Manolo Gabbiadini struck a free-kick past Daniele Padelli in the Granata goal.
Sampdoria did attack for the first 20-25 minutes but Torino eventually kept more possession and the Doriani were happy to sit back and hit on the break. Granata coach Giampiero Ventura threw on more attacking options but it was Sinisa Mihajlovic’s team that took their chances.
The Doria defence was solid throughout the match. Shkodran Mustafi kept a careful eye on Ciro Immobile and he earned himself a call-up to the German national team. Youngster Michele Fornasier came on for the last half an hour and he slotted-in just fine.
Sampdoria’s maligned goalkeeper Angelo Da Costa was booed last week but he was in fine form against the Granata. Perhaps with more performances like this, there will be less Sampdoria fans calling for him to be replaced by Vincenzo Fiorillo.
In the central midfield positions, Pedro Obiang and Renan did well in the absence of experienced midfielder Angelo Palombo. Both of them supported the defence but Renan added a bit more offensively than Obiang.
Roberto Soriano and Eder made more of a presence in the attacking midfield positions in the first half but things were quieter in the second half. At least Soriano made a solo run in the second half.
Okaka also went for a solo run in the second half before being fouled. Sampdoria’s new centre-forward was hard to handle not just when he went for a dribble but for the whole game in general.
Replays showed that he was offside when he scored in the first half but he did hit the crossbar minutes later and the Torino defence couldn’t handle his large frame. In the two matches that he has started in, he has looked like the ideal targetman for the Doriani.
Then there is Gabbiadini. He has played 2,058 minutes of Serie A football this season and he has had his most successful season so far, scoring seven goals and providing two assists.
It wasn’t the first time that Gabbiadini has scored a free-kick this season. He scored one against Bologna in the 2-2 draw in Round 2. He bent the ball around the wall and it sailed into the bottom corner.
On the Facebook and Twitter pages of English-speaking forum www.ucsampdoria.co.uk, there is an enhanced image of Gabbiadini in a Superman cape. Based on that photo, Sampdoria fans don’t need Super Mario. They have Super Manolo!
Sampdoria face Livorno in Round 27 at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris and Maxi Lopez, Andrea Costa and Palombo will be back from suspension.
An old face will also be making an appearance for Livorno against the Doriani. Amaranto coach Domenico Di Carlo coached Sampdoria in the Blucerchiati’s ill-fated 2010-11 Serie A campaign, which resulted in him being replaced by Alberto Cavasin and then the club got relegated.
Sampdoria fans will probably be hoping that with Livorno on the weekend, Di Carlo achieves a result which was familiar to him at Samp: defeat.
Follow Vito Doria on Twitter: @VitoCDoria
