Biggest win this season? Three points at the Ferraris!

Cittadella have earned possibly their biggest win all season on Sunday afternoon at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris thanks to a second half goal from Mirko Antonucci.

Both Genoa and Cittadella were coming into the match out of form, and the match was a golden opportunity for either team to get a boost of confidence going into the last month of 2022.

It hasn’t been the ideal start for Edoardo Gorini’s Cittadella so far this season. The Granata had only won one game in their last nine league matches going into the Ferraris on Sunday, and were starting to drift towards the relegation spots.

A big performance was needed from everyone. A first half were Cittadella got pressed by Genoa’s attacking quality produced two big stops from Elhan Kastrati in goal. The Albanian keeper finished the game with 5 saves, frustrating Genoa and their fans.

With seemly his first touch of the ball, substitute Andrea Danzi found space on the right-hand flank and crossed a perfect ball for Mirko Antonucci to tuck it past Adrian Semper. After 62 minutes of play, Antonucci broke the deadlock, making it his fifth goal of the season.

Genoa would not go down without a fight. Just minutes after Antonucci’s goal, Icelandic international Albert Gudmundsson dribbled past the Cittadella defense, and Kastrati had to be called into action again with another save. The hosts registered 14 shots in total on the day compared to Cittadella’s three, but they still couldn’t find a way past Kastrati.

In stoppage time and with a chance to put the game to bed, Mamadou Tounkara found himself one vs one as the Genoa players pushed almost everyone up. Tounkara, with as much time as you can have, failed to put the shot on target, and missed the goal completely. That chance nearly costed the Cittadella three points, as Genoa went the other way looking for a late point. Guven Yalcin was served a point blank cross, but who else than Elhan Kastrati was there to block the shot and clear the danger.

In a stadium against a club with a rich history, Cittadella pull off a stupendous win on the road in Genova. It was a much needed win, and one that certainly boost moral and the attitudes of fans and players. The win puts Cittadella on 19 points in 13th place, sitting three points from the playoffs and four points from the play-out spot.

It’s a quick turnaround from this great game: Cittadella are back at home on Thursday as they take on newly promoted Bari.

Top Photo: LaPresse