League: Libertas and Faetano aiming to reopen the race for eleventh place

Not only the title race, which is becoming more thrilling week after week. Dominating the headlines, even more concretely ahead of the upcoming 25th matchday of the Campionato Sammarinese BKN301, is also the battle for eleventh place – the last position granting access to the post-season. In this respect, Fiorentino and San Giovanni face fixtures that could definitively cement their place among the teams heading to the play-offs or, on the contrary, throw their qualification back into doubt. On the horizon there are indeed two delicate clashes with Libertas and Faetano, level on points in thirteenth place and eight points adrift of Domagnano’s 28 points – the benchmark for those in pursuit. Among the four sides, only one player has been suspended by the sporting judge: Buzi of Libertas. The tasks awaiting Domagnano and San Marino Academy are more complicated. The Biancazzurrini will take on Cosmos tomorrow in Fiorentino. The Gialloverdi, now out of the title race and eliminated in the first round of the Coppa Titano, are looking to improve their league position as much as possible to reap the benefits in the play-offs – where they will appear with the clear aim of winning and qualifying for the UEFA Conference League in the same way as last season. Domagnano, meanwhile, will lock horns with a Tre Penne side seeking redemption after their midweek debacle in the Coppa Titano. The 4-1 defeat in the first leg of the semi-final against La Fiorita is something Ceci’s team will want to forget quickly, having got back to dreaming of the title on the back of an impressive run of victories. Sunday’s match in Domagnano will be officiated by a quartet of Andorran officials, in San Marino as part of the Referees Exchange project, which has at the same time taken Valli, William Villa, Lunardon and Bellavista to the Pyrenean state to referee two First Division matches (tomorrow and Sunday). There is a double appointment as well for the Andorran officials in San Marino: Casado and Gonçalves will alternate as referee and fourth official, while Pinilla and Guiu will act as assistant referees not only in Tre Penne-Domagnano, but also in tomorrow’s Juvenes-Dogana vs Murata fixture. This will force coach Amati to look for an alternative to the suspended Giacomo Valentini. Both sides are now certain of a play-off spot; their objectives are, respectively, to consolidate their current position (Juvenes-Dogana) and to launch an assault on Tre Fiori for fifth place, just two points away (Murata). De Falco’s Gialloblù, coming off their Coppa Titano defeat to Virtus (1-3), now face the La Fiorita test. What is perhaps the most eagerly awaited game of the weekend will be played in Montecchio on Sunday at 15:00. There are heavy points at stake, especially for La Fiorita – who are level at the top with Virtus. The Neroverdi will be in action at the same time at the “Federico Crescentini” in Fiorentino, where they will take on a Folgore side looking for greater consistency. Just one win in their last five outings for Oscar Lasagni’s team, who have been caught by Fiorentino and have yet to seal their post-season berth. They will also be hoping, if possible, to put Juvenes-Dogana’s seventh place back in play – a position that would spare them the exertions of the Preliminary Round. There is a relegation scrap in Saturday’s late kick-off: Cailungo and Pennarossa, now out of contention as far as the play-off places are concerned, will face each other at the foot of the table. The Biancorossi are still searching for their first win of the league campaign, while Cailungo have picked up three victories so far. Filippo Dolci, Pennarossa’s coach, will have to cope with the heavy suspensions of Montalti and Barbieri – the latter being the first-choice goalkeeper of the Chiesanuova club. Here is the schedule for Matchday 25 of the Campionato Sammarinese BKN301:

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