Parma draws in Bari and is arithmetically promoted

BARI-PARMA 1-1
Parma returns to Serie A: Pecchia’s team, which achieved promotion for the third time in their career, discarded Catanzaro’s gift and, with the 1-1 draw in Bari, re-embraced the top Italian championship after 3 years. Everything happens in the second half: it is the Ducali who break the deadlock, taking the lead in the 50th minute with Bonny’s splendid right-footed shot to the far post. The Apulians, fighting not to be relegated, didn’t have it and equalized in the 68th minute with another masterpiece: that of Di Cesare, who found the top corner with his right foot from the edge of the area and drove San Nicola crazy. Then, however, the hosts did not accelerate in an attempt to find a success which would mean overtaking Ascoli and Ternana, now tied at 37 points. Therefore, after four minutes of injury time, Parma’s celebration began, returning to Serie A: the last season played in the top Italian championship was 2020/2021. But now, one of the historic teams of our football returns as a protagonist among the 20 best in Italy.

LECCO-SAMPDORIA 0-1
Playoff hit for Sampdoria, who won 1-0 at the home of already relegated Lecco and rose to seventh place with 49 points, +3 on the ninth place occupied by Südtirol and Reggiana. It all happens in the final minutes: Lepore, the architect of the home team’s promotion from Serie C last year, gets sent off for a terrible high-leg foul on Pedrola and the Blucerchiati immediately take advantage of this by scoring the decisive goal in the 81st minute with De Luca , who resolves a scrum in the box with a tap-in on the goal line. This is how Pirlo smiles, returning to victory after four rounds and confirming himself in the playoff zone.

FERALPISALÒ-BRESCIA 2-2
Spectacular 2-2 between FeralpiSalò and Brescia, but it is a 2-2 that smacks of doom for a team that had also found a comeback while dreaming of salvation that is now very far away. The Rondinelle opened and closed the score with Bisoli, who scored a brace between the 4′ and 42′: in between, the momentary 1-1 by Dubickas (9′) and the temporary overtaking signed by La Mantia (29′), then in the second half no one manages to find the winning point. Brescia scores their third draw in a row and rises to 48, in the playoff zone, while FeralpiSalò remains at 33 and now does not have its fate in its hands: if two of Ascoli, Ternana and Bari win the next one, it is in Serie C .

REGGIANA-MODENA 1-0
The Emilian derby goes to Reggiana, who beat Modena 1-0 at the Mapei Stadium to secure safety, an objective that is in any case close for the Canaries too given the +6 over Ascoli, Ternana and Bari. The match is decided in the 64th minute: first comes the foul in the area on Pieragnolo by Oukhadda, then Gondo’s shot from the spot, which displaces Gagno and decides a very heartfelt challenge for Nesta’s team, who are now even -2 from the playoffs.

CATANZARO-VENICE 3-2
Everything happens at Ceravolo: deluge, sun, hail, an interruption, an expulsion, two goals disallowed, a penalty saved and then repeated in the 96th minute and the pyrotechnic 3-2 between Catanzaro and Venezia, with the Giallorossi smiling right upon expiration. The match seems to start in the worst way for the guests: in the 5th minute, in fact, Pontisso gives the home team the lead, even if in the 14th minute the immediate response comes with Idzes. Then, in the 23rd minute, hail forced referee Ayroldi to interrupt for almost an hour. We resume and the episodes continue: Bjarkason scores but offside, then Ambrosino has to leave room for Biasci. At half-time it was 1-1 but in the 55th minute Idzes put the orange-greens back ahead. Two minutes later, Sverko leaves Venezia with ten men and Iemmello immediately takes advantage of the situation by making it 2-2 in the 59th minute. The Calabrian striker would also score the 3-2, which however was rightly disallowed for offside. And in injury time everything happens: Joronen saves a penalty from Iemmello but without having his feet on the line. Repeated conclusion and goal in the 96th minute, with Ceravolo exploding. Como is also celebrating, as if they win in Modena they will be in Serie A next matchday.

CREMONESE-PISA 2-1
Zini rejoices at Cremonese’s return to victory, which breaks free after three matches and defeats Pisa 2-1 in a decidedly hard-fought match. A success that does not change the ranking of the grey-reds, still fourth but with 63 points. Direct promotion is now a mirage, for a team as beautiful as it is fluctuating, but this placement would see Stroppa and him start from the semi-finals of the playoffs. The best start goes to Pisa, but in the 13th minute Cremonese passes: Calabresi knocks out Buonaiuto and the referee, after an on-field review, awards the penalty which is converted by Ciofani. This is the first goal of the season for the veteran, preferred to Coda, and from here on the pace slows down without there being any other significant jolts in the first half. Aquilani attacked the second half with two substitutions, introducing Arena and Barbieri, and they reacted immediately. After coming close to scoring with the attacking winger, Pisa equalized in the 49th minute: Moreo stole the ball from his rivals and fed D’Alessandro, who came in and made it 1-1. Zanimacchia tries to inspire the Grigiorossa victory, but the decisive man is Coda, who hadn’t scored for almost two months. The attacker came on in the 76th minute and, after ten minutes, scored the winning goal: the method was spectacular, with a free kick that went over the barrier and into the top corner. The attacker has scored 126 goals in Serie B, bringing him within nine goals of Schwoch’s all-time record (135) in the category. Cremonese rejoices, saved by Saro in injury time, and Pisa regrets: Aquilani and his team remain stuck at 45 points and the playoffs, already tonight, could be far away with only two days left until the end of the regular season.

COMO-CITTADELLA 2-1
Goldaniga’s goal in the 94th minute from a corner could be worth a season, and in a positive way, for Como, who come back from Cittadella at the end and confirm themselves in second place with two days to go. Yet, the guests scared one of the candidates for promotion when, in the 71st minute, they took the lead thanks to Pittarello’s shot. However, the 0-1 lasted just two minutes, because Verdi, who entered in the second half, immediately scored the equaliser, putting everything back into question. And the forcing was rewarded right in injury time with Goldaniga’s corner kick, which resolved a melee in the penalty area from zero meters and in a regular position. Como rises to 71 points and remains master of its destiny: if it wins the next two it will be in Serie A. Cittadella, on the other hand, remains at 45, but is still safe given Ascoli’s defeat against Cosenza. Now, we have to try to access the playoffs.

SÜDTIROL-TERNANA 4-3
Crazy match at Druso: Südtirol beat Ternana 4-3 and achieved salvation, now being able to aim for access to the playoffs. The match heats up immediately: in the 9th minute, Odogwu gives the home team the lead, but the excellent action by Pereiro (23′) and the goal by Luperini (33′) make it possible for the rossoverdi to overtake already in the first half, in which also saw Molina’s goal disallowed, no 2-2. In the second half, Casiraghi goes wild, first scoring the 2-2 in the 51st minute, then in the 75th minute he scores the 3-3 on a penalty kick, with the expulsion of Boloca (60′) in between and the other brace, that of Luperini also swells the net in the 67th minute. The balance was broken in the 85th minute by El Kaouakibi, who gave three very precious points to Südtirol. Late night, however, for Ternana, which remains at 37 in the hot zone.

SPEZIA-PALERMO 1-0
Spezia achieved a fundamental success for survival: they beat Palermo 1-0 and suffered their second consecutive defeat after the one against Reggiana. The goal that decides the match arrives already in the 16th minute, with Di Serio making a fabulous lob that goes past Pigliacelli, but Lund’s mistake in the back pass is evident in the episode. The Rosanero try in the second half, but the result does not change: Spezia at +3 in the playout zone with 180 minutes to go, while the Rosanero can no longer directly reach the playoff semi-finals. Fourth place, in fact, is now 11 points away.

ASCOLI-COSENZA 0-1
The other saving grace came to Del Duca, but it wasn’t Ascoli who signed him, who remained in the playout zone, but Cosenza, who won 1-0 over the Bianconeri. And it is Tutino who finds the saving goal, who receives from D’Orazio and, with a right-footed shot from a standstill, finds a curling conclusion which hits the post and enters the goal. In the second half, VAR took away a penalty from the home team in the final minutes and the score remained 1-0. Calabrians officially safe: now they can chase the playoff dream.