First defeat in the rosanero for Michele Mignani and the boos of the “Barbera” are deafening. The Palermo loses against Reggiana and sees the possibility of closing the gap on the fifth-placed Catanzaro disappear. Nesta’s men got off to a better start and controlled the pitch for the first twenty minutes. However, it is the pinks who take the lead with Brunori, who ‘invents’ a great goal. Palermo’s approach to the second half is very negative, so the guests find an equalizer Portanova and even doubling with Rozzio. The reaction of Mignani’s men is not vehement, so Reggiana manages to win three golden points.
GUIDO MONASTRA’S REPORT CARD
6.10 PM – THE MATCH ENDS. “BARBERA” BOOSTS.
48′ st – Reggiana is managing their advantage well. Palermo fails to make themselves dangerous.
45′ st – Five minutes of added time.
45′ st – Double change in Reggiana. Pieragnolo and Bianco are out, Pajac and Cigarini are in.
41′ st – Palermo tries to besiege Reggiana, who however defends with order. These are very important points for Nesta’s men with a view to salvation.
34′ st – Change in Reggiana: Gondo out, Okwonkwo in.
33′ st – Palermo closes Reggiana inside the penalty area but Nesta’s defenders reject all the rosanero’s conclusions: Brunori, Traorè and Soleri had tried.
31′ st – Great opportunity for Brunori, who kicks left-footed from inside the penalty area; the ball was well aimed but hits Soleri, who was in the path.
29′ st – A very offensive Palermo at the end of the match: Mignani chooses the 4-2-4 to get back into the game. Insigne plays on the right, Traorè on the left, Soleri and Brunori are the strikers. Segre acts as the low right winger of the four-man defence, Diakité is the central defender with Lucioni.
28′ st – Changes in Palermo: Nedelcearu and Di Francesco out, Insigne and Traorè in. Replacement also in Reggiana: Portanova out, Antiste in.
24′ st – Segre now plays on the right wing, while Ranocchia is the right midfielder in the five-man midfield. Mignani does not change the 3-5-2 in this final match.
22′ st – Change in Palermo: Buttaro out, Ranocchia in.
21′ st – GREAT GOAL FROM ROZZIO. The Reggiana captain volleys a right-footed shot following a corner kick and beats Pigliacelli. Beautiful technical gesture.
16′ st – The teams are stretched, the draw is not good for anyone. Reggiana regained strength at the start of the second half, but Palermo is still in the game.
11′ st – Opportunity for Brunori. The captain volleys a right-footed volley from a tight angle after Di Francesco’s cross, a high ball.
10′ st – Changes in Palermo: Mancuso and Henderson out, Soleri and Segre in.
7′ st – SUPER GOAL BY PORTANOVA. Beautiful free kick taken by the Reggiana playmaker from 20 meters, Pigliacelli could do very little.
6′ st – Henderson booked for a foul on Gondo.
3′ st – Another save by Pigliacelli. The Rosanero goalkeeper blocks a header from Rozzio following a corner kick.
2′ st – Another excellent intervention by Pigliacelli, who blocks a poisonous cross following a corner kick. A couple of Reggiana players were ready to strike.
5.18 PM – THE SECOND HALF BEGINS. There are no substitutions.
5.03 PM – END OF THE FIRST HALF. Reggiana started better, dominating the field for 20 minutes and coming close to taking the lead. Palermo grows as the minutes pass and finds the goal with Brunori, author of an extraordinary play (as much as Lucioni’s assist).
45′ pt – One minute of added time.
43′ pt – Marcandalli booked for a foul on Buttaro.
41′ pt – Palermo uses ball possession to control the pace of the match. Reggiana fell after an excellent start to the match, now they are crushed in their own half of the pitch.
35′ pt – BRUNORI’S SOUNDOUS GOAL. Launch by Lucioni, the Rosanero captain skips the goalkeeper with the stop and scores with his left foot into an empty net. The assistant raises the flag but the VAR validates the beautiful goal of 9. Palermo is ahead.
34′ pt – Big protests from Palermo for an alleged handball committed by Kabashi in the penalty area. The referee made broad gestures that he hadn’t seen an infringement. The VAR confirms.
32′ pt – Libutti booked for a foul on Brunori.
31′ pt – Very rare for pinks. Brunori crosses from the left, Mancuso is unable to hit the ball which grazes the goal post defended by Satalino.
28′ pt – Great opportunity for Palermo. Nedelcearu hits the corner kick, the ball ends up high over the crossbar.
25′ pt – Palermo now manages to get out of their own half, but the pace is low and the technical errors are too many. The guests have slowed down a bit compared to the very good start to the match.
19′ pt – After the scare, Palermo ‘exited’ their own half of the pitch. The first attempt towards Satalino’s goal is from Gomes, but the right-footed shot from distance ends up in the corner.
15′ pt – Miracle of Pigliacelli. The Rosanero goalkeeper saves on a sure shot from Rozzio following a corner kick. Palermo suffers.
12′ pt – Reggiana moves the ball around with relative ease, Palermo’s pressing isn’t working. Mancuso and Brunori have practically not been involved so far.
6′ pt – The first shot on goal belongs to Reggiana. Kabashi shoots with his left foot from the edge, Pigliacelli blocks. Very good start for Nesta’s team, Palermo have yet to enter the match.
2′ pt – First potential opportunity for Reggiana with Gondo. The attacker shoots from a tight angle, Nedelcearu does well to clear the corner kick. He started Nesta’s team well.
4.17 PM – THE MATCH BEGINS. Palermo attacks from right to left.
4.13 PM – The teams enter the field. Palermo in pink shirt and black shorts, Reggiana in garnet shirt and white shorts.
4.00 PM – The players return to the changing rooms. Soon to enter the field.
3.36 PM – The teams are on the pitch for warming up.
A race not to be missed. The Palermofresh from three draws in a row, is looking for victory against Reggianawhich is experiencing a difficult period and is coming off three consecutive defeats.
THE OFFICIAL LINE-UPS (kick-off at 4.15pm)
PALERMO (3-5-2): 22 Pigliacelli; 23 Diakité, 5 Lucioni, 18 Nedelcearu; 25 Buttaro, 53 Henderson, 4 Gomes, 17 Di Francesco, 3 Lund; 9 Brunori (Cap.), 7 Mancuso.
Available: 1 Desplanches, 13 Kanuric, 2 Graves, 6 Stulac, 8 Segre, 11 Insigne, 14 Ranocchia, 15 Marconi, 27 Soleri, 32 Ceccaroni, 70 Traorè.
Trainer: Mignani.
REGGIANA (3-4-2-1): 12 Satalino; 17 Libutti, 4 Rozzio (Cap.), 27 Marcandalli; 15 Fiamozzi, 42 Bianco, 77 Kabashi, 3 Pieragnolo; 72 Melegoni, 90 Portanova; 11 Gondo.
Available: 1 Sposito, 7 Varela, 8 Cigarini, 9 Vido, 16 Reinhart, 18 Okwonkwo, 20 Blanco, 23 Pettinari, 25 Szyminski, 28 Antiste, 29 Pajac, 30 Vergara.
Trainer: Nesta.
Referee: Perenzoni (Rovereto)
AA1: Rocca (Catanzaro)
AA2: Policeman (Cosenza)
4th OFFICER: Perri (Roma 1)
VAR: Maggioni (Lecco)
AVAR: Serra (Turin)
READ ALSO
SERIES B, THE MATCHES OF THE 35TH DAY
