Serie B: the Ascoli-Sudtirol postponement ends 1-2, Masiello decisive

Masiello’s play decides the postponement of B. At Del Duca, Sudtirol beat Ascoli 2-1 thanks to a goal by the defender, the cover man in the final. The former Atalanta player cunningly recovers a ball in midfield, exchanges with Casiraghi and punches Viviano a quarter of an hour from the ninetieth minute, giving his team a golden success to distance themselves from the relegation zone. Valente’s team rises to 27 points, Castori’s men remain fifth from last on 22 points.

opens tait

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The start of the race immediately brought problems for Castori. After a minute Pedro Mendes puts his foot down badly and hurts his ankle: the Portuguese, Ascoli’s top scorer with 10 goals in the league, tries to grit his teeth but is forced to make a substitution at half-time. In his place, inside Rodriguez. Before the break he commands the phrasing in the middle, with series of fouls breaking up the game. The only notable action led to a goal for Sudtirol at the end of 5 minutes of injury time: Casiraghi fed Davì, the midfielder put it in the middle and Tait made it 1-0. The Bianconeri protested against a handball from Scaglia, which started the counterattack, but referee Di Marco confirmed the goal.

ascoli goals

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Another match begins with the second half. Ascoli returns to the pitch more convinced and finds the equalizer in anger after a few turns of the clock. In the 55th minute, Arrigoni risks dribbling on the edge of the area but Castori’s team’s pressing is effective and D’Uffizi recovers the ball. The attacker gets to the shot, Poluzzi’s rebound hits Tait and it’s 1-1. At this point the Bianconeri believe it and try to take advantage of the moment: around the hour mark, it is a miracle from Poluzzi on Streng’s header that keeps Sudtirol afloat. Ascoli raises their center of gravity, Valente’s team resists and finds new energy thanks to the changes up front, with the arrivals of Ciervo and Pecorino. The three-point shot comes with Masiello in the 78th minute: the Sudtirol defender recovers the ball in midfield after a wrong heel by Rodriguez, triangulates with Casiraghi, slips into the area and holes Viviano with his left. The home team forced the game towards the end, but the wall resisted even in the 7 minutes of added time. Valente breathes, setback for Castori.