Pisa 0-1 Cittadella: Granata, Pandolfi upset promotion chasers

A famous afternoon for Cittadella in Pisa.

The Granata secured a narrow 0-1 victory at the Cetliar Arena on Saturday, upsetting 2nd-placed Pisa after a 83rd minute game-winning goal from Luca Pandolfi.

Pisa entered the weekend undefeated at home in league play, having not lost a Serie B match front of its home fans in 350 days. Despite tallying just five shots and being outplayed for majority of the match, Granata head coach Alessandro Dal Canto praised his players for their concentration and effort for the win.

“I said before the match: if we wanted a result, we couldn’t make any mistakes,” Dal Canto said after the game. “We had to hope Pisa has a bad day and for us a bit of luck. We did what we had to do and we bring home a victory that is fundamental for its value.”

Following a slow first half, Pisa midfielder Gabriele Piccinini thought he opened the scoring shortly after halftime with an easy header off a set piece. However, the goal did not stand due to an offside following a VAR check.

Another opportunity arose for Pisa in the 64th minute when striker Olimpiu Morutan found space inside the Cittadella penalty box for a quick shot, but his unbalanced effort sailed over the bar.

Cittadella’s patience payed off seven minutes from stoppage time as Pandolfi chipped in his sixth goal of the season into the bottom corner. Following a quick counter attack and cross by Simone Tronchin, the striker made no mistake with Cittadella’s fifth shot attempt of the game.

The Nerazzurri nearly found their equalizer into stoppage time after a bouncing ball was met by Stefano Moreo, whose effort ricocheted off the post.

“I think it was a balanced match, maybe with a slight territorial predominance by Pisa,” Dal Canto said. “Having said this, we did not steal anything from this match.”

The win puts Cittadella on 30 points and three clear of the relegation zones for the night. The Granata quickly return to the pitch next Friday in Catanzaro.

“The standings are very close and this win against a team in second place has a very important value,” Dal Canto said. “There are still strong teams behind us and that’s why this win is so important. Our objective is still to survive relegation.”

PHOTO: A.S. Cittadella / Facebook