We had to leave the field with three points, but it was already a good draw. An ancient law of football says: “If you can’t win, at least try not to lose.” And so it went, in a bad match between Brescia and Ternana, daughter of fear and a championship finale in which all twenty Serie B teams are still competing for an objective. Maran’s (the play-offs) is diametrically opposed to Breda’s (direct salvation), yet the nine-point difference in the standings was not visible on the pitch. On the contrary. Although the scoring opportunity that came to Jallow in the ninetieth minute was very inviting, on points it is the guests who can and must complain about something. In the 27th minute, VAR took away the opening goal from Luperini, on which Moncini sacrificed himself with a double save from the ground on the goal line. The referee Bonacina, the worst on the pitch on an afternoon where few people rose above the mark, had first awarded the goal and then was induced to rectify it by those who were able to check the monitor: for a few centimetres, the ball was not entrance. Then, in the 33rd minute of the second half, the same script but for an offside signal to Di Stefano in the action that Ternana had carried out. In the middle, in the 21st minute, a sensational header hit the crossbar by Dionisi: Lezzerini did well to touch it with his fingertips, Bertagnoli was also decisive in saving on Capuano with an empty net, after the ball had come back into play.
In short, that’s enough to judge the point as positive. However, the overall performance was not sufficient, lackadaisical as against Venezia and this time complicated by the opponent’s tactical plan, not by his strength. Due to objective limitations of the squad (too soft in the middle of the pitch), magnified by the absence of Borrelli at the center of the attack, Brescia suffers in Mompiano against the teams that come to defend themselves to take away the point: it had already happened with Sudtirol and Reggiana under Maran’s management, with Gastaldello at home they had also struggled to scrape together a draw against Ascoli. An individual flash or an episode from a set piece was needed: in the only noteworthy attempt, in the second half, the goring of the usually generous Bisoli was saved by Vitali. In the first half, however, the only significant combination between Moncini and Bianchi ended with a high shot from the latter. Then, in the ninetieth minute, the good ball was thwarted in the area by Jallow (match winner of last year’s match), with a high volley from a very good position.
With four games to go, the Swallows still remain seventh and in pole position to earn a ticket – even eighth place would be enough – for the play offs. The calendar, which seemed inviting, will however propose four more matches with the unsafe teams, including the derby in Piacenza on May 1st with Feralpisalò. The route seemed flat, but this is not a Brescia for sprinters: it needs the uphill road to try a counterattack. He would find it in the promotion play-offs, but now we have to get there.
