Futsal: Juvenes-Dogana clinch last fixture in a thrilling finish

A spectacular finale wrapped up Matchday 11 of the San Marino Futsal Championship, with Juvenes-Dogana racing into a three-goal lead before being pegged back by Cailungo’s extraordinary comeback – only for Cellarosi’s side to secure three crucial points in the context of the race for the postseason, with more than a third of the regular season already in the books.

Early on, Rossini and Gatti trade chances, but the two number 15s lack precision. Meloni fares no better, steering a left-footed effort wide with the goal at his mercy. Sarti also comes up short, denied one-on-one by Forcellini. For Juvenes-Dogana the most dangerous actions come through Cavalli, threatening from distance before getting on the scoresheet on 20 minutes: a lightning-fast counter-attack perfectly finished off from Quaranta’s assist. Captain Muccioli then fails to double the lead from a Simone Celli pass, though the latter proves decisive in the move that leads to his brother Thomas’ goal – clinical in front of La Monaca. At the other end, Meloni tries again without success shortly before the interval.

After the restart Pollini’s men burst out of the blocks but squander another open-goal opportunity with Gianni – set up by Sarti. To make matters worse, the sucker punch soon arrives at the other end: Cian is quickest to react to a loose ball and stretches to turn it home, putting Juvenes-Dogana 3-0 up. Cailungo refuse to give in and pull one back through Sarti, who completes a one-two with Angelini and beats Forcellini midway through the second half. The Rossoverdi keep pushing and are grateful to La Monaca, decisive in a one-on-one with Cavalli and the assist man for Meloni’s 53rd-minute strike to make it 3-2. A minute later, it’s all square again: Lotti drives through the middle, capitalising on a collision between Rossini and Quaranta to restore parity. Anything can happen in the closing stages: Rossini fails to hit the target from a promising position, while Gatti forces a save from La Monaca and paves the way for a fresh Juvenes-Dogana lead through Thomas Celli, who taps in. Sarti then passes up a golden chance to level it again, before Thomas Celli – once more – earns the penalty converted by Gatti for the final 5-3 scoreline.

Below is the full schedule for the 11th matchday of the league: