Sampdoria leapfrogged Lazio to go level on points with Napoli in third place in Serie A after seeing off Parma 2-0 at the Ennio Tardini on Sunday afternoon.
Despite a determined display from the Gialloblu, they eventually fell behind early in the second-half through a well worked move finished off by Gonzalo Bergessio, and as they went in search of an equaliser, conceded once more with Roberto Soriano grabbing Samp’s second.
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Parma
Antonio Mirante – 6.5 – Unfortunate
Forced into an athletic stop to deny Duncan in the first-half but could do nothing to stop the Sampdoria opener, however, other than that he looked comfortable overall and will help improve confidence in the coming months.
Andrea Costa – 6 – Unfortunate
Alongside his defensive colleagues performed admirably for the majority of the match, but also played his part in the indecision that ultimately cost them the points.
Gabriel Paletta – 6.5 – Strong
A commanding display that, if replicated, will go a long way in helping the Gialloblu in their battle with relegation, however, still committed the odd rash challenge and could have conceded a penalty.
Alessandro Lucarelli – 7 – Positive
It was surprising to see the veteran defender strolling out of defence with the ball so often eager to join the attack and his distribution from the rear was assured.
Andrea Rispoli – 6 – Quiet
Other than creating Parma’s one clear chance of the opening 45 minutes he rarely tested Sampdoria full-back Regini who therefore found himself little more than going through the motions at times.
Antonio Nocerino – 6 – Rusty
No doubt happy to be back on a Serie A pitch after a difficult spell at Torino, however, the midfielder did not drive forward enough to press the Blucerchiati rearguard into action and looked as though minutes are needed to regain form.
Francesco Lodi – 6 – Invisible
Other than doing the bare minimum when in possession of the ball with the quality he possess in his left foot he could have looked to switch the play quicker or play the ball over for the willing running of Bidaoui.
Jose Mauri – 6.5 – Tireless
Always making himself available for the ball, but too often could not shake off the attention of the Sampdoria midfield and could make little impact.
Massimo Gobbi – 7 – Energetic
With countless bursts down the left flank he was the most positive of the Parma midfield in trying to take the game to Sampdoria, however, when presented the chance to give the Gialloblu the lead on 27 minutes shot straight at Viviano.
Antonio Cassano – 6.5 – Frustrated
Always looking to link the play only to be let down by the options offered from his teammates and cut a frustrated figure as Parma failed to trouble the Sampdoria defence.
Soufiane Bidaoui – 6 – Bright
Began the match well, breaking into the box early on but his poor attempts to win a foul and final ball often let him down and he faded as the game went on.
Substitutes
MacDonald Mariga (for Lodi 46 minutes) – 5.5 – Pedestrian
Replacing the ineffectual Lodi the Parma midfielder somehow succeeded in having even less of an impact on the game than his predecessor.
Raffaele Palladino (Nocerino 58 minutes) – 6.5 – promising
Although there was something somewhat futile about his efforts he got himself involved in the play and will surely be in contention for a starting spot next time out.
Nicola Pozzi (Gobbi 73 minutes) – 6 – Eager
Far too late to affect a match that had slipped away from the Gialloblu be did his best and looked interested.
Sampdoria
Emiliano Viviano – 7 – Bored
Forced into an instinctive save from Gobbi midway through the first-half but did his best to make it look uncomfortable having to gather the ball at the second attempt, but with little else to trouble him must have been counting down the minutes towards the end.
Lorenzo De Silvestri – 7 – Assured
Kept occupied by the attacking forays of Gobbi the Italian rarely ventured forward to provide any great width for the Blucerchiati and limiting his use as an attacking threat himself.
Alessio Romagnoli – 7 – Untroubled
A quiet afternoon for the youngster but looked to bring the ball out from defence when the opportunity presented itself and will have improved his concentration levels.
Matias Silvestre – 7 – Solid
Just as with centre-back partner Romagnoli he will experience few afternoons as easy as today this season and probably expected a more testing time given Parma’s desperate need for points.
Vasco Regini – 6.5 – Cautious
Despite the limited threat of Rispoli he never he was overly cautious in moving forward and almost every ball played from the full-back was back to one of the central pairing.
Duncan – 8 – Impressive
Showed excellent touches and attacking drive, particularly the run that ended in the crucial second goal that killed any hope Parma had of recovering a point. Unlucky not to score.
Angelo Palombo – 7.5 – Combatative
While his distribution was neat and assured during the first period as soon as the Blucerchiati took the lead he became more tenacious in the tackle providing the perfect shield in front of the defence.
Pedro Obiang – 7 – Quiet
Still willing to drive forward from midfield the Spaniard was quiet compared to recent performances but still provided suitable support as part of the engine room trio.
Roberto Soriano – 8.5 – Crucial
Provided the creativity Sampdoria will need after Manolo Gabbiadini’s departure and played a wonderful ball to Eder that virtually created the first goal before showing awareness to follow up and stroke home the second.
Gonzalo Bergessio – 7 – Clinical
Expected to be the man most affected by the impending arrivals of Luis Muriel and Samuel Eto’o the Argentinean struggled at times against a physical Paletta but showed great composure to lift the ball over Mirante for the opener.
Eder – 7.5 – Off target
Involved in most of Sampdoria’s significant attacking play, however, the Brazilian was wasteful at times whether through poor execution or his decision making in crucial areas.
Substitutes
Stefano Okaka (for Eder 75 minutes) – 6.5 – Physical
With the match won the Italian international provide the physical challenge and ball retention required to see out the final few minutes.
Nenad Krsticic (Obiang 84 minutes) – N/A
Luka Djordjevic (Bergessio 90+2 minutes) – N/A
