Two minutes, two goals: Cittadella surrenders lead to draw Cremonese

Cittadella head coach Alessandro Dal Canto said before Saturday’s match against Cremonese that the Granata often didn’t show signs of conceding before a big collapse.

He was proven right once again as Cittadella surrendered a two-goal lead within two minutes to draw Cremonese at the Stadio Giovanni Zini.

Dal Canto’s men entered the game having won once in their last five outings, and looked to be cruising to an eighth victory on the road after leading 2-0 with less than 20 minutes remaining. But a set piece goal and a defensive miscommunication led way for a Griogiorossi comeback, courtesy of two goals from substitutes Mattia Valoti and Charles Pickel.

“Cremonese has great technique, they are a great team,” Dal Canto said after the game. “But football lives based on who is the first to exploit the key moments.”

Similar to Cittadella’s last road trip–a 0-1 victory against Juve Stabia–the Granata opened the scoring through Orji Okwonkwo, who netted his second goal since re-signing for the club in January. The striker neatly finished a chance at the top of the box following a scuffed pass by Simone Rabbi.

In Cittadella’s previous match against Sassuolo, the Granata conceded less than 30 seconds into the second half to trail by two goals. This time, however, Cittadella was on the opposite end. It took Rabbi just 15 seconds to score his third goal of the season and give Cittadella a two-goal advantage at the start of the second half.

Cremonese lacked an attacking threat throughout the second half, failing to attempt a shot on target despite controlling most of the possession. However, that changed quickly in the 73rd minute after Federico Ceccherini pulled away from Francesco D’Alessio to set up Mattia Valoti in front of goal, giving the Griogiorossi a lifeline.

Two minutes later, Cremonese completed the turnaround when Cittadella goalkeeper Elhan Kastrati ran to claim a long ball into the penalty box. However, a miscommunication between the Albanian keeper and Elio Capradossi allowed Charles Pickel to score into a keeper-less goal.

The hosts came close to winning it in four minutes later when Marco Nasti found space on the edge of the box and fired a shot toward goal, only for his effort to be parried away by Kastrati.

Cittadella collects only its second draw on the road this season and breaks its two game losing streak. The point keeps the Granata a point above 16th-placed Carrarese, who is Citta‘s next opponent.

“We bring a point home that’s earned in a difficult pitch,” Dal Canto said.

TOP PHOTO: A.S. Cittadella / Facebook