By Edoardo Stella
Results from round 33 of the 2020/21 season:
Serie A table:
Spezia continue their strange form, as Genoa gain all three points
Spezia won eight games this season, four of which against teams in the top nine, that being Sassuolo, Sampdoria, Milan and Napoli.
Vincenzo Italiano’s team was coming off a strong draw against Inter and, despite the result being largely due to Inter’s woeful precision in front of goal, it was still an important showing.
However, Spezia appear to struggle against sides who are lower down in the table, as Genoa come out as winners, making a large step towards permanence in Serie A.
Exciting battle for pride between Parma and Crotone
Two teams that had already a foot and a half out of the Serie A. Parma may have had a slight glimmer of hope had they won, but it wasn’t to be.
With such teams playing, goals could be expected and, in fact, there was an astonishing 4-3 for the visitors. Adam Ounas was everywhere, scoring a goal and assisting two, Simy continued his exciting form in 2021, netting a brace for his 18th and 19th goals of the season.
Once again, Crotone concede multiple goals, but finally there is joy for coach Serse Cosmi, who gets his second win at the lead of the Pitagorics.
Domenico Berardi has finally become a complete leader
Berardi’s career was always a mix of ups and downs. His excellent first years in the Serie A were his original downfall, as a lot of expectation were put on his shoulders.
The winger went through a long negative period and few seasons in which he really struggled to score or assist. He put his head down, dedicated his career to Sassuolo and resurged from the ashes.
His bicycle-kick on Saturday was spectacular, leading Sassuolo to their fourth win in a row for his 14th goal in 25 games this season.
He is still 26 years old, but now looks like a veteran and nobody is doubting his qualities anymore.
Embed from Getty ImagesOverflowing Udinese put Benevento at risk
The last time Udinese had scored four goals in a Serie A game was in 2017. The (then) worst attack in the league produced a stunning show to soundly beat Benevento and move up to 39 points, now finally settling for a calmer end of the season.
Benevento did have their chances, tried to play an open game, but were punished and should really need to worry now. They only got 10 points in 17 games, only winning one of them (against Juventus) after a very strong start to the season.
Matteo Darmian: the jolly that puts Inter so close to the title
When Darmian joined Antonio Conte’s squad, many people criticised the choice, claiming he wasn’t good enough for the team. Darmian surprised with his reliability and his ductility, rarely underperforming.
Recently, he is also scoring important goals, once again netting the winner in a tight game, as he converted into a goal the through ball from Achraf Hakimi.
Step by step, he conquered a huge space in the heart of all Inter fans, as they keep moving closer to the so desired Scudetto. Should they reach their target, they will really have to thank the Italian winger.
Juventus appear like a demotivated team
It’s obviously acceptable to give up your crown after nine straight years of winning, but doing it in this manner it’s not going to make president Andrea Agnelli happy.
Juventus are held to a 1-1 draw against Fiorentina, playing a bland game that shows their lack of psychological and physical form. Dusan Vlahovic scored a penalty for Fiorentina, but Alvaro Morata scored 31 seconds after coming on at half-time with a spectacular left-footed effort.
Still, there was no further reaction from Juventus, no spark of pride, not even the will to fight for a top-four place that is even more in danger now.
Atalanta do appear like a motivated team
The total opposite to what was said above with Juventus: Atalanta are giving their all and, as per usual, perform wonders in the second part of the season.
Only Inter have done better than Atalanta in the second part of the season and Gian Piero Gasperini’s men are emerging as favourites for second place, which would be the best finish in their history.
Bologna started strong and Atalanta soon appeared under threat, but an invention from Luis Muriel put Ruslan Malinovskyi in front of goal to start the show. Muriel himself scored a penalty, as there were goals from Remo Freuler, Duvan Zapata and Aleksei Miranchuk: there is no stopping at the moment for this team.
Cagliari’s miracle gets closer, as Roma disappoint once again
Cagliari get their third win in a row, as they finally caught the group of teams above them in the table, for a fight that suddenly became interesting once again.
Great merit goes to them and to coach Leonardo Semplici for keeping the focus on their target and believing it was still possible to come-back.
On the other hand, Roma are holding on to the upcoming Europa League semi-final, as their only chance of redeeming their season. The Giallorossi only got five points in the last seven games, losing to sides sitting at the bottom like Parma, Cagliari and Torino.
In the meantime, Sassuolo got 16 points and the gap to seventh reduced to three points. Roma should focus, because from coming close to a European final to not being in Europe next season there is a small margin.
Napoli move up to third with a win over Torino
It is a golden period for Napoli, who finally return in the top four after leaving it in January.
It took a two minute spell to win the game, as Tiemoue Bakayoko and Victor Osimhen scored at the 11th and 13th minute respectively. Napoli were very much in control and finally look like a team that is made for the top four.
The calendar sees them playing five teams situated in the bottom 11 places in the last five games: Napoli have a huge chance on their hands to return in the Champions League after just one year.
The battle for the top four heats up as Lazio beat Milan
Clear 3-0 for Lazio, who shock Milan and keep alive their hopes of a top four finish. After spending the first 32 games in the top two places, Milan find themselves out of the top four all of a sudden.
It’s not even an easy calendar for the Rossoneri and the upcoming games with Juventus and Atalanta will be decisive for their top four hunt.
It was the night of Joaquin Correa, who scored a brace with two beautiful goals in which his excellent dribbling abilities emerged.
For Edoardo’s previous Serie A column click here.
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