Cittadella continues to win, gets fifth straight victory at home.

Cittadella started 2024 right where they left off as the Granata defeated 10-men Palermo on Saturday afternoon.

Edoardo Gorini’s side had not lost a game since late October, spanning eight games without defeat coming into the weekend. The Granata had never beaten Palermo on home soil in club history prior to the match. In front of 6,040 spectators, Cittadella got its fifth straight home win and improves to a provisional 3rd place in Serie B.

Palermo entered Saturday with one of the strongest attacks in the league, having scored three goals in each of the last four games. Eugenio Corini’s team had made up ground following a poor stretch of form in the fall, and looked to leapfrog Cittadella with a win at the Tombolato.

Despite some early pressure from the visitors, it was Cittadella who broke the deadlock after 26 minutes. Luca Pandolfi scored once again just like he did in the reverse fixture, slotting home a shot following hard work on the right side from Filippo Pittarello. It was Pandolfi’s first goal since December 2nd, and his fourth of the season.

Cittadella has not lost a game this season so far when scoring the first goal. Palermo nearly equalized minutes after halftime as Matteo Brunori found himself behind the Cittadella defense. However, Brunori was denied by Elhan Kastrati with a huge save to deny the Palermo skipper.

The Rosanero‘s task in the second half got worse in the 50th minute when Leo Stulac received a second yellow card from a tackle on Alessio Vita. Stulac had been instrumental in Palermo’s latest victory against Cremonese, but was sent off with 40 minutes remaining at the Tombolato.

Despite the man disadvantage, Palermo looked to equalize as the half went on. Their chances of a draw were dashed in the 80th minute as Vita scored his fourth league goal of the season to put the game out of reach. Pittarello was once again the protagonist of the build up, sending a low cross where an open Vita fired it home at the far post.

Cittadella once again showed their strengths and claimed another three points; their tenth win of the campaign. The win pulls the Granata into 3rd place with 36 points, having played a game more than 4th place Venezia. Palermo remains four points behind Cittadella in 7th.

It’s the perfect way to start the new year for Gorini and co as the Granata continue to win in the league. They’ll be hoping to stretch their unbeaten run to 10 games next weekend away against Ternana.

PHOTO: Massimo Felicetti