Cagliari – Milan 1-3
Markers: 29′ pt Luvumbo, 40′ pt Okafor, 45′ pt Tomori, 15′ pt Loftus-Cheek
Cagliari (3-5-2): Radunovic 5; Wieteska 5 (1′ st Oristanio 6), Dossena 5, Hatzidiakos 5.5; Zappa 5 (36′ st Di Pardo sv), Nandez 6.5, Makoumbou 5.5 (39′ st Deiola sv), Sulemana 5.5 (22′ st Viola 6), Augello 6; Luvumbo 7, Petagna 5.5 (22′ st Shomurodov 5.5). On the bench: Aresti, Scuffet, Goldaniga, Obert, Azzi, Prati, Pavoletti. Coach: Ranieri 5.5
Milan (4-3-3): Door 6.5; Florenzi 6, Thiaw 6.5, Tomori 7.5, Hernandez 6.5 (39′ st Bartesaghi sv); Loftus-Cheek 7.5, Adli 6.5 (13′ st Pobega 6), Reijnders 7 (14′ st Musah 6); Chukwueze 6 (24′ st Romero 6), Okafor 7, Pulisic 7 (24′ st Leao 6). On the bench: Mirante, Nava, Kjaer, Calabria, Pellegrino, Giroud. Coach: Pioli 7
Referee: The Pen of Rome 6.5
Note: clear sky, pitch in good condition. Booked: Wieteska, Loftus-Cheek, Zappa, Oristanio. Corners 3-5. Added time 2′, 5′ st.
Milan comes back and wins against Cagliari 3-1, momentarily grabbing Inter at the top of the table. It was Okafor, Tomori and Loftus-Cheek, all with their first goal of the season, who gave Stefano Pioli the three points after the initial scare caused by Luvumbo’s goal. The guests started strong and after 90 seconds they shot from the edge of the box with Reijnders, but the ball went just wide. In the 28th minute, after a quick ball on the ground, Reijnders frees Okafor with a heel who, however, kicks weakly with his left foot from a good position, finding Radunovic ready to make a diving save. The rossoblù meet for the first time in the 29th minute and immediately take the lead. Nandez forcefully recovers a ball on the edge of the area and serves Luvumbo who unloads a powerful left-footed shot surprising Sportiello at the near post. The Rossoneri were unable to accept it and in the 40th minute they equalised. Pulisic beats Zappa, enters the area and puts it in, finding an imprecise intervention from Radunovic who leaves the ball available to Okafor, who scores into an empty net to score the first goal with his new shirt. A few moments before the break, the goalkeeper redeemed himself with a great save from a left-footed shot from Hernandez. The second goal is in the air and arrives right on the following corner. A successful scheme frees Reijnders, who enters the area and puts in a poisonous low ball which is pushed into the goal by Tomori for the 2-1 which completes the comeback. It is the score with which the two teams go to the break. The first chance of the second half goes to the Sardinians and arrives in the 11th minute, when Adli has to sacrifice himself with his body on a safe shot from Luvumbo. In the moment of maximum pressure for the newly promoted team, Pioli’s men scored a hat trick after a quarter of an hour. Pulisic, from the left, serves Loftus-Cheek at 20 meters who adjusts the ball on the right and unleashes a millimetric conclusion that goes into the corner. It is the network that definitively addresses the challenge. In the final stages there will still be time to see an excellent save from Sportiello on a close shot from Oristanio, but the result will no longer change. Thanks to this victory, Milan rises to 15 points and joins Inter at the top while awaiting the Nerazzurri’s evening match against Sassuolo. Cagliari, thanks to Empoli’s success, instead drops to last position with just 2 points to their credit.
Verona – Atalanta 0-1
Marker: 13’pt Koopmeiners
Verona (3-4-2-1): Montipò 6; Magnani 6, Hien 6, Dawidowicz 5.5; Faraoni 5.5 (12’st Lazovic 6), Hongla 6 (38’st Serdar sv), Duda 6 (28’st Saponara 6), Terracciano 6; Ngonge 5 (28’st Henry 6), Folorunsho 5.5; Bonazzoli 5 (12’st Suslov 6). On the bench: Berardi, Perilli, Amione, Cruz, Joselito, Charlys, Tchatchoua, Coppola. Coach: Baroni 5.5
Atalanta (3-4-3): Carnesecchi 6.5; Toloi 6.5 (33’st Scalvini 6), Djimsiti 6.5, Kolasinac 6; Holm 6.5 (1’st Hateboer 6), De Roon 6, Ederson 6.5, Ruggeri 6 (43’st Palomino sv); Koopmeiners 7, Pasalic 5.5 (27’st Miranchuk 6), Lookman 6 (1’st De Ketelaere 6). On the bench: Musso, Rossi, Muriel, Bakker, Zortea, Adopo, Zappacosta. Coach: Gasperini 6.5
Referee: Dionysis of L’Aquila 6.5
Note: playing field in good condition. Booked: Ederson, Ngonge, De Roon, Folorunsho, Toloi. Corners: 4-1. Recovery: 1’pt, 5’st.
Three wins in the last three matches between the championship and Europa League. Atalanta returns to winning away from home: against Hellas Verona they finish 1-0 thanks to Koopmeiners’ goal in the first half. Second away success for the Bergamo team after the two defeats against Frosinone and Fiorentina and Gasperini’s team is currently in third place with 12 points. In the next round there will be the big match against Juventus while the yellow-blues will challenge former Juric’s Torino. Gasperini has changed very little since the victory in Cagliari, with Pasalic as first striker and De Ketelaere on the bench. Baroni instead placed Bonazzoli in the center of the 3-4-2-1 with Folorunsho and Ngonge in the attacking midfield, while the yellow-blue coach was absent with four. Gian Piero Gasperini’s team broke the deadlock in the 12th minute, with De Roon serving Koopmeiners, the Dutchman passing Montipò with an unstoppable diagonal low shot from the edge of the area. The hosts struggled to react, Pasalic in the 34th minute – all alone inside the small area – was unable to take advantage of Lookman’s pass, arriving a moment late on the Anglo-Nigerian’s perfect assist. The pace didn’t change even in the second half, Verona tried with a free kick from Duda which ended high over the crossbar of the goal defended by Carnesecchi. In the 20th minute, Djimsiti came close to doubling his lead with a header from a free kick in the midfield, but the best opportunity fell to De Ketelaere, the Belgian was unable to reach Koopmeiners’ goal from close range. . The Scala team attempted a final push in five minutes of added time, but it wasn’t enough to equalise: only a shot from Suslov from distance worried the Orobic goalkeeper.
Empoli – Salernitana 1-0
Marker: 34’pt Baldanzi
Empoli (4-3-1-2): Berisha 6; Bereszynski sv (16’pt Ebuehi 6), Walukiewicz 6.5, Luperto 6, Pezzella sv (12’pt Cacace 6.5); Fazzini 6.5 (29’st Marin 6), Grassi 6.5, Maleh 6; Baldanzi 6.5 (29’st Cambiaghi sv); Chancellors 6.5, Shpendi 6.5 (29’st Gyasi 6). On the bench: Perisan, Stubljar, Kovalenko, Guarino, Ranocchia, Destro, Bastoni, Indragoli. Coach: Andreazzoli 6.5.
Salernitana (3-4-2-1): Ochoa 6.5; Lovato 5.5, Gyomber 5, Pirola 5 (1’st Daniliuc 5.5); Mazzocchi 6 (19’st Dia 5), Maggiore 6, Martegani 5 (1’st Bohinen 5.5), Bradaric 5 (41’st Tchaouna sv); Candreva 5 (1’st Botheim 5), Kastanos 5.5; Cabral 6. On the bench: Costil, Fiorillo, Allocca, Bronn, Fazio, Sambia, Stewart, Legowski, Sfait. Coach: Paulo Sousa 6.
Referee: Rapuano of Rimini 6
Note: Approximately 10,000 spectators. Booked: Maggiore, Grassi, Maleh. Corners: 10-2. Recovery time: 5′ time, 6′ time.
Empoli deservedly wins the survival challenge against Salernitana. Beyond the narrow final 1-0, in fact, the Tuscans played and held the reins of the match by imposing technique, determination and competitive spirit.. A clear step backwards for Paulo Sousa’s Campania team, who seemed stammering and without ideas. Cabral’s post, 4′ from the end, is the only flash of a match to be erased. Andreazzoli immediately loses Pezzella and Bereszynski, two forced substitutions for the Tuscans in a quarter of an hour. Cancellieri is not cold in front of Ochoa (17′) who repeats himself immediately after on Walukiewicz. Grassi doesn’t find the target while Cabral is offside (19′) when he puts the ball inside the Empoli net. The little gem Baldanzi devours the opening goal (22′) from Fazzini’s corner, then the pace slows favoring the Baldanzi’s flash who broke the deadlock by collecting Cancellieri’s serve and scoring the first Italian goal in the championship. Fast broken after 484 goalless minutes for Empoli. VAR says no to a fall by Baldanzi (40′), Maleh wastes the ball to make it 2-0 (44′). Three changes at half-time for an angry Paulo Sousa.
Salernitana tries to equalize but the attempts of Kastanos (4′), Bradaric (10′) and Cabral (14′) are lacking. Ochoa blocks a shot from Shpendi (17′) and a right from Fazzini (21′), Salernitana dives into attack in the excited final. In the 41st minute Cabral, with a curling shot, hits the post with Berisha beaten. It is the fourth wood for the Salernitana player. Cabral exchanges with Dia in the 48th minute, then tries to equalize but Berisha earns his grade by dirtying his gloves. Recovery that seems infinite for Empoli, at least until Castellani’s roar which certifies the Azzurri’s first championship victory.