Tuesday 16th April
Brescia 3 – 1 Grosseto
Empoli 5 – 0 Juve Stabia
Modena 0 – 0 Bari
Padova 2 – 1 Crotone
Pro Vercelli 2 – 1 Varese
Reggina 0 – 2 Sassuolo
Spezia 1 – 0 Cesena
Verona 0 – 0 Cittadella
Vicenza 1 – 0 Ascoli
Virtus Lanciano 1 – 1 Ternana
Wednesday 17th April
Livorno 1 – 3 Novara
One can only begin to imagine how palpable the sense of relief must be within the Sassuolo ranks following their 2-0 win over Reggina. A first victory in six matches – the Neroverdi’s longest winless run in over two seasons – coupled with Verona’s failure to beat Cittadella has seen the gap between the sides extended to eight points, and once again promotion looks to be a matter of ‘when’ rather than ‘if’.
The Neroverdi were by far the livelier of the two sides during the opening exchanges, and having gone close to opening the scoring on no fewer than four occasions, there was little surprise when Richmond Boakye slammed the ball home from six yards on the half hour. Reggina almost levelled shortly after the restart when Marco Armellino’s glancing header forced a stunning save from Alberto Pomini, and Sasssuolo edged closer to victory when the ever impressive Simone Missiroli turned home from the edge of the area with half an hour remaining. Substitute Alessio Campagnacci came closest to giving Reggina a lifeline, but Eusebio Di Francesco’s men held on for an absolutely vital three points.
Livorno’s 3-1 defeat to in-form Novara means that the gap between Sassuolo and second place is now back to seven points. There can be little doubt that, were it not for a dismal run of form midway through the season, the Biancoazzurri would surely have been in the thick of the title race, with Haris Seferovic’s hat-trick setting them on course for a seventh straight win. As Sassuolo themselves will attest, there is little shame in losing to Novara on current form, and Livorno, who pulled a goal back late on through Alfred Duncan, should be confident of returning to winning ways against Grosseto at the weekend.
A second consecutive goalless draw has meanwhile once again plunged Verona’s hopes of promotion into doubt, with Nicola Ferrari forcing a fine save from Cittadella keeper Alex Cordaz and Raphael Martinho curling an effort onto the crossbar. Far from dominating, the Gialloblu often ceded possession in dangerous areas, and but for a fine performance from Verona keeper Rafael and some wayward finishing from Samuel Di Carmine, the visitors may just have come away with a notable victory.
All of which means that Empoli were able to further the cause of those side’s hoping to contest the play-offs come the season’s end, closing the gap on Verona to just six points with a stunning 5-0 rout of Juve Stabia. The Tuscan side’s regular front trio of Francesco Tavano, Massimo Maccarone and Riccardo Saponara have had a sensational season, bagging 44 goals between them, and were once again in outstanding form. Saponara’s deflected strike started the procession after half an hour, with Tavano clipping in the second in the 36th minute. Saponara swept home his second and Empoli’s third with an hour played, while Tavano bagged his own brace ten minutes later, with Maccarone adding his own name to the score sheet with 17 minutes left on the clock.
Elsewhere, Brescia moved into the play-off places with a 3-1 win over Grosseto, a result that condemns the Grifone to Lega Pro football next season. The hosts edged in front through Andrea Caracciolo’s close range effort on the stroke of half time, while Luigi Alberto Scaglia doubled the advantage with a wonderful left footed drive from distance shortly after the restart. Caracciolo added a third with a fine effort from the edge of the area, and though Gennaro Delvecchio pulled one back from the spot with 25 minutes remaining, it proved merely a consolation.
Varese meanwhile slipped out of the play-off places following a surprise 2-1 defeat to Pro Vercelli, a side who are almost certain to be relegated but are clearly refusing to go without a fight. Alessandro Ranellucci headed the Piedmont outfit in front inside the opening seven minutes, and though Angelo Rea levelled three minutes before the break, a well worked set-piece saw Martino Borghese steer in what proved to be the winner on the stroke of half time. Meanwhile, Modena’s play-off aspirations were also dealt a blow after they were held to a goalless draw at home by Bari.
A Manuel Iori penalty and Aniello Cutolo tap-in gave Padova their first win in nine, though they were made to endure a nervy finish after Crotone’s Camillo Ciano pulled one back with two minutes remaining. Spezia’s hopes of beating the drop received a boost after Stafano Okaka’s second half strike won all three points against Cesena, giving the Ligurian side their third win in four.
Stefano Giacomelli fired in the only goal of Vicenza’s encounter with Ascoli inside the opening minute, giving the Venetian side a fighting chance of beating the drop while also leaving Ascoli three points from safety. Finally, it finished all square between Virtus Lanciano and Ternana, with Manuel Turchi’s fine strike putting the hosts ahead in the 38th minute, only for Fabio Ceravolo to steer in the equaliser in first half injury time.
Player of the Week: Simone Missiroli (Sassuolo)
The league leaders had looked listless in the absence of their midfield talisman in recent weeks, with the side’s dip in form coinciding with an injury lay off for the talented 26-year-old. Having made his return against Brescia at the weekend, Missiroli appeared back to his best in the 2-0 win against Reggina, stamping his authority on the midfield before grabbing the crucial second goal. Following the game, the former Reggina player paid tribute to the Calabrian side’s fans for their warm reception, and there can perhaps be no greater testimony to a player’s ability than to be applauded off by opposing supporters.
Goal of the Week: Luigi Alberto Scaglia (Brescia)
Brescia’s second goal against Grosseto came courtesy of a truly wonderful strike from midfielder Luigi Alberto Scaglia, who hit a powerful, swerving effort into the top corner from 25-yards out that left Grifone keeper Ivan Lanni completely stranded.
Follow Kevin on Twitter: @KevertonFC_84
