Cittadella 2-1 Lecco: Iori’s squad goes fourth after chaotic second half

A red card, a disallowed goal, a penalty awarded then overturned and a double post. The second half between Cittadella and Lecco proved to be everything but a cagey affair in the battle between third and sixth in Girone A.

But it was the Granata who came out on top: Manuel Iori’s side completed the second half turnaround on Sunday afternoon to beat the Blucelesti 2-1 and climb into fourth place for the first time since January.

It’s the second straight victory at home for Cittadella where the team trailed 1-0 at halftime. Simone Rabbi scored his 11th goal of the season to level the match in the 52nd minute. And just like in the reverse fixture in November, Davide Castelli scored late from the penalty spot to secure all three points.

Iori knew the importance of Sunday’s game. With five matches remaining in the regular season, the win for Cittadella moves the club within a point of third-placed Lecco. A loss, however, would’ve been a huge blow to the Granata‘s hopes of a top three finish.

“We prepared a game and they executed it, with some errors,” Iori said after the game. “We have to give credit to the opponents because they are a great team, they play excellent football.

“I called (the game) life or death, because (we’re either) -1 or -7 (points from Lecco). Now there’s a lot at stake with the other six-pointers and we’ll see.”

Cittadella conceded the first goal in a match for the fourth time in its last five games after Antonio Metlika slotted his effort into the bottom corner following a counter attack.

However, the game really bursted into life in the second half. It started with Rabbi tying the match after finishing his initial blocked shot seven minutes after halftime.

Lecco slowly found momentum following a slow start to the half. The visitors nearly retook the lead when substitute Sean Parker launch his free kick which twice struck the post. Less than 10 minutes later, Niccolò Zanellato thought he scored after finishing a cross into the roof of the net, only for the offside flag to deny the midfielder.

But after surviving the close calls, referee Giuseppe Rispoli awarded the Granata a late penalty following a handball at the edge of the box. Castelli scored his first goal since his decisive penalty against Lecco in the reverse fixture to give Cittadella the lead.

The drama continued as the visitors were awarded a penalty after a handball committed by Castelli only minutes after scoring the go-ahead goal. However, following a Football Video Support (FVS) review, Rispoli overturned the decision and instead issued Parker a second yellow card for a foul during the incident.

Despite trailing at halftime for the third straight match, Cittadella found a way to claw back and secure a win to put Iori’s side one point behind the Blucelesti.

“It gives value to the victory,” Iori said on trailing early but winning the match.

The Granata will next travel to Brescia on Friday night for another decisive game for the league standings.

“(This win) has to make the guys understand we can’t go below this,” Iori said. “Otherwise we haven’t learned and will continue to make mistakes there.”

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TOP PHOTO: A.S. Cittadella / Facebook