Carpi beat Hellas Verona 2-1 at the Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi in Serie A on Sunday afternoon, keeping their hopes of survival well and truly alive.
A 43rd minute solo effort from Antonio Di Gaudio opened the scoring for the Biancorossi, with Artur Ionita equalising in the 63rd minute on the end of a corner only to see his goal cancelled out minutes later by a stunning Kevin Lasagna free-kick.
It was the away side that started the stronger of the two bottom-ranked clubs, demanding a strong share of the early possession.
Just four minutes in, some strong lead up work saw Di Gaudio head down a cross to set up Raffaele Bianco on goal. The number eight connected well only to see his effort rebound off the crossbar.
The home team soon played themselves into the match and on 10 minutes, veteran striker Luca Toni had a fantastic chance to put Verona ahead.
Mohamed Fares led a counter-attack down the left-hand wing, crossing superbly to provide the number 9 a free header in front of goal, only for his effort to be met by a strong save from Vid Belec.
The following 25 minutes saw the game characterised by fouls and wayward passes with Carpi’s Di Gaudio looking the most likely creator for either team.
On 36 minutes, the 26-year-old beat one before crossing in to provide Jerry Mbakogu a point-blank header, only for the striker to direct the ball into the ground and over the bar.
Six minutes later, the number 11 decided to go alone, beating two Verona defenders at the edge of the box, before curling a superb effort around Pierluigi Gollini to give Carpi a half-time 1-0 lead.
The second half saw the Gialloblu command the early possession as the home fans grew increasingly impatient.
On 63 minutes however, Carpi finally submitted to the growing pressure when Ionita climbed the highest off a corner to head past Belec at the back-post.
Immediately after conceding, coach Fabrizio Castori substituted the disappointing Mbakogu for Lasagna, which would turn out to be a masterstroke just three minutes later.
Having won a foul outside the box, the substitute curled a stunning free-kick into the top right corner, leaving Gollini with little-to-no chance of saving it and reclaiming the Biancorossi’s lead.
Tensions were high as Verona went in search of an equaliser with a half-chance headed effort from Ante Rebec at the far post standing as the closest the home team could get.
To make things more sour, the Gialloblu would soon find themselves down to 10 men as half-time substitute, Rebec, picked up a second yellow.
In spite of the final minute theatrics, the visitors hung on for an important victory in the battle for top flight survival.
The win takes Carpi out of the relegation zone and up to 17th in Serie A for just the second time this season, while leaving Verona rock bottom by a near insurmountable eight points.
