Futsal: Folgore and Fiorentino face off again, this time for top spot

Already at the time of the fixture draw, many eyes were on the next chapter in the duel between the dominant teams of recent San Marino futsal seasons. While last year’s meeting came late, this season’s blockbuster between Folgore and Fiorentino arrives almost immediately. It is scheduled for tomorrow evening, at Fiorentino at 20:15. The sides coached by Zonzini and Michelotti, who have contested the last three finals – the most recent won by the Falciano club – will battle it out for top spot on their own in the standings. Both are on maximum points and boast the league’s best defence (3 goals conceded), and both are chasing a win that could shape the balance of power between now and the end of the regular season. At the same time, but in Domagnano, the two closest challengers will also go head-to-head. Even though labelling Juvenes-Dogana a “chaser” is technically not accurate. The Serravalle side have also won every match played so far – one fewer than the top two because the Biancorossazzurri had their rest day on the opening matchday. This time it is Cailungo’s turn for a forced break. For Levani’s team this will be the first real test of the year, after the expected wins over Tre Penne, San Giovanni and Cailungo themselves. Tomorrow at 20:15, they face a Murata side determined to shake off the disappointment suffered against Folgore, when defeat (1-3) arrived in the dying minutes. The other early evening fixture is scheduled in Dogana and pits Cosmos against Tre Penne. Level on 3 points after four games, they have shown contrasting form. Muccioli’s men won on the opening day and have lost every match since. By contrast, the club from Città halted a run of three straight defeats in their most recent outing, edging past Libertas. Sharing a calendar that has been anything but straightforward so far, both are looking for technical certainties and valuable points. After that, it will be the turn of La Fiorita v Faetano. The second match in Dogana sees the Gialloblù from Montegiardino as clear favourites. Galli’s men arrive on the back of three consecutive victories following their slip on the opening day against Tre Fiori, a side of similar stature and ambition. Faetano’s path has been completely different: they recently picked up their first points of the season against Cailungo after three defeats in their first three outings. On paper, the match between San Giovanni and Tre Fiori (Domagnano, 21:45) also appears to have a clear favourite. That would be the Gialloblù coached by Alex Bugli, who have collected 6 points from three matches. Their only misstep came in the Fiorentino derby two rounds ago. Elmiro Corbelli’s side, by contrast, have yet to observe their rest day and are still searching for their first points to lift themselves from the foot of the table, where they sit alongside Libertas. Rounding off Monday’s programme in Fiorentino (21:45) is Virtus v Pennarossa. A fixture that is more finely balanced than the table might suggest, it promises to offer intriguing pointers for both clubs’ technical projects. The Neroverdi have won three of their four games so far, while Pennarossa – who have already had their rest day – raised their arms in celebration on the opening day, only to then suffer two predictable defeats against Murata and La Fiorita. It will therefore be interesting to gauge the real potential of two teams who could play the role of outsiders this season. Finally, the late kick-off between Libertas and Domagnano has been moved to the Acquaviva sports hall. The Granata have known nothing but defeat at the start of a season that, after pitting them against Folgore and Fiorentino, then saw them slip up in a theoretically winnable clash with Tre Penne (0-1). It is a match Domagnano cannot afford to get wrong, having lost three of their four outings. After the opening win over bottom side San Giovanni, the Lupi have fallen to Tre Fiori, Virtus and La Fiorita. Kick-off is at 21:45, with Tonelli and Sgrignani appointed as the refereeing duo. Here is the schedule for the fifth matchday of the 2023-24 Campionato Sammarinese di Futsal:

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