Back Down To Earth...

Pro Sesto 2-0 Venezia

I actually got to see Venezia twice in the space of a week as they were involved in the anticipo for C1 which was shown on Raisport Sat on Friday evening. Unfortunately, it didn't make for as enjoyable viewing as the previous Sunday...

Again, we started well and played good stuff in the first half, but crucially we failed to make the breakthrough. The second half was a different story - the defence looked more shaky, and it wasn't long before Pro Sesto scored with what was their first real chance of the game, a long range shot that beat Lotti. Things got worse a few minutes later when Lotti was taken off injured.

We pressed for an equaliser without really creating a clear-cut chance, and Pro Sesto got their second from the penalty spot late on, which had the added bonus (for them) of reducing us to 10 men as Taccucci was sent off for the professional foul.

A performance to forget really, but it does seem that we are a very different proposition on the road - something which needs to change quickly if we want to try and secure the automatic promotion spot.

Well Worth The Visit!

Venezia 5-0 Pro Patria

Well, that was worth the price of flights and hotel alone. The Lagunari put on a tremendous show last week for my visit to the Penzo, thrashing Pro Patria and playing some nice football while they were at it.

When Moro scored the first after five minutes, you knew it was going to be a good day. Collauto, our captain and the best player on the park, broke down the right wing and crossed the ball to the far post for Moro to head in. There was a slight scare a few minutes later when a Venezia old boy, Fabian Valtolina, hit the bar with a 30 yard volley, but we soon got our second - another Moro header, this time from a cross from the left wing after good work by Pradolin. Moro had a couple of chances to grab a first half hattrick, most notably after Pradolin slalomed past four players and laid it on a plate for him, but he chipped tamely into the goalkeeper's arms.

The performance was so dominant that the only question after halftime was whether we woud continue to press for more goals. In fact, we did change style slightly, allowing Pro Patria to attack (without creating anything) and then hitting them on the break. Gennari got our third - Pradolin again going down the left and crossing, Gennari chipping the ball over the keeper then following it up to head into the net. Moro then came off for the legendary Paolo Poggi, who added the last two - the first a beautiful chip after he broke the offside trap, and the second a late penalty in injury time.

It really was great to be there when that happened - definitely makes me want to see them play more (though I wonder if I would have been saying that if we lost...of course I would!) Standout players are the aformentioned Collauto, Moro and Pradolin, but the whole team look pretty good for that level and we play a nice passing game. Definitely gives hope for the rest of the season - even with their subsequent result, which I'll post about in a minute...!

Our Shaky Away Form Returns

Cremonese 3 - 1 Venezia

A bit of a hiccup this weekend (at least that's all I hope it was) - 3-1 against a team that was struggling to win in recent weeks. Taccucci got our only goal.

Still, we can take the loss on the chin if we can get back to winning ways this Sunday - and we better, since I'm going to be there in person to watch them! Quite excited about seeing the boys in the Penzo for the first time - I hope they don't disappoint!

Serie C1/A:
1. Monza P 11 W 7 D 3 L 1 GF 19 GA 7 Pts 24
2. Sassuolo P 11 W 6 D 5 L 0 GF 17 GA 6 Pts 23
3. Venezia P 11 W 5 D 4 L 2 GF 13 GA 10 Pts 19
4. Lucchese P 11 W 5 D 3 L 3 GF 12 GA 6 Pts 18
5. Pisa P 11 W 3 D 7 L 1 GF 5 GA 3 Pts 16

Staying on Track

A couple of updates as I was too ill - and, okay, too lazy - to update last week. First, last week's game:

Cittadella 0-0 Venezia

Not a lot to say about this game - a local derby against one of the better teams in the league, so I suppose an away draw isn't too bad. Apparently we had our goalkeeper Lotti to thank for keeping us in the game.

An important result in the sense it kept our positive run going - and a nice platform for the game on Sunday:

Venezia 2-0 Novara

This wasn't an easy game on paper, but an early Gennari goal (who else?) set us on our way to a fairly comfortable victory. Marco Moro added the gloss with a late penalty in the second half.

As well as the result, the performance was a good one, which sets us up nicely for the run in to Christmas. More importantly, I hope the boys can put on a good performance like this in their next home game in two weeks, because I will be there in person to cheer them on!! (You see, there are advantages to extravagant birthday gifts to the girlfriend - I'm sure she'll be delighted to spend the afternoon freezing her ass off at the Pierluigi Penzo!)

Serie C1/A:

1. Monza P 10 W 6 D 3 L 1 GF17 GA 7 Pts 21
2. Sassuolo P 10 W 5 D 5 L 0 GF 15 GA 6 Pts 20
3. Venezia P 10 W 5 D 4 L 1 GF 12 GA 7 Pts 19
4. Lucchese P 10 W 5 D 3 L 2 GF 12 GA 4 Pts 18
5. Padova P 10 W 4 D 3 L 3 GF 10 GA 5 Pts 15
6. Pisa P 10 W 3 D 6 L 1 GF 5 GA 3 Pts 15