The battle at the top of Serie B is extremely tight, and Venezia cannot afford to drop points.
Joel Pohjanpalo has scored valuable goals for Venezia in the last rounds. PDO
The sun’s rays break through the clouds, and the rain-soaked streets of Venice begin to dry out before the evening’s match.
The pace of Joel Pohjanpalo, 29, in the pride of the canal city is ferocious. They are on a four-match scoring streak. The net has swung six times in those matches. Suomalaitykki leads the scoring market with 14 hits.
More is expected from him on Wednesday. Less than a hundred kilometers away, Cittadella from the province of Padua will visit the Pier Luigi Penzo stadium on Wednesday night.
On the side of one of the narrow streets, there is a cafe with a black-orange-green scarf of Venezia FC hanging on the wall behind the counter. When the man behind the counter Ardi hears that the customer is from Finland, the topic immediately turns to one person.
– Bottom fire! He is a crazy goal scorer and a great guy, Ardit enthuses.
The talkative man has the buttons and the facts.
– Pohjanpalo was previously the only Venezia player who wanted to live specifically on the island, and not on the mainland. That says a lot about him. I appreciate that gesture very much because it makes him like one of us, the jovial man beams as the fresh espresso pours into the porcelain cup.
Derby
The history of Venezia FC is full of financial crises and failures in the lower league levels. Sometimes there has been no information about the existence of the club. That’s why it hasn’t developed as many passionate derby matches as many other Italian clubs.
However, Venezia–Cittadella can be called a local struggle. The clubs are talking about the Veneto derby. Cafe owner Ardit is going for the first time to curvato the end stand of the loudest supporters.
– Derby matches are always difficult. We have to succeed in front of our supporters and represent our city honorably, Venezia’s head coach Paolo Vanoli stressed on Tuesday in the media.
Valuable points
The world’s oldest sports newspaper, Gazzetta dello Sport, known for its pink paper, praised Joel Pohjanpalo a little over a week ago in its Sunday edition. Anssi Karjalainen
The top team in Serie B is very even. With a win, Venezia would still hold on to the second place in the standings and the place of direct ascension. Cittadella, who is in sixth place, is also aiming for the promotion qualifiers.
In Venezia, the ruthlessness of the qualifying place is known. Last spring, the season ended in the semi-finals. A straight climb would be a huge relief compared to the pressure of qualifying.
Pohjanpalo’s goals have supported Venezia in the last rounds. So is the goalkeeper Jesse Joronenalthough small mistakes have happened to Huuhkajat-veskar.
Just a couple of laps ago, Venezia lost its lead and ended up in a bitter draw with Modena. Of course, it was also a funny coincidence, because Modena and Venezia are friendly clubs.
In January, the middle class team Cosenza struck three times already in the opening period, and Venezia suffered a 2-4 loss.
We can no longer afford to sag.
The away team rumbles
The local newspaper Il Gazzettino predicts Pohjanpalo to open against Cittadella – of course. Anssi Karjalainen
The mantle of pre-favorite is completely on the shoulders of the Venetian team. Cittadella is on a streak of six losses.
– Although it has been difficult for Cittadella, it is still a tough team and still involved in the qualifying battle. We have to move quickly after the losses and win second balls for ourselves, Vanoli predicts on the club’s website.
– We have to win today, nothing else will do, says cafe owner Ardit.
In the early season, Vanoli still preferred a 4–3–3 or 4–4–2 game system, but in recent matches the system has changed to three top players and a 3–5–2 format.
In the last round’s 2–1 win against Pisa, Venezia showed one of the best performances of the season. The team looked Serie A-worthy.
You can watch the Venezia–Cittadella match as a live broadcast with an IL Plus subscription from 9:30 p.m.