Futsal: La Fiorita edge through and reach the final again

It takes just one free-kick from Alex Mattioli for La Fiorita to secure a second consecutive Scudetto final. The decisive match of last season ended in disappointment for Leonardo Palermino’s side. On that occasion Fiorentino came out on top; this time, standing in the way of the Gialloblù and the first league title in their history will be Folgore, already faced in these play-offs in the first semi-final. On that occasion the verdict was overwhelmingly in favour of Spada’s team. La Fiorita’s mission will therefore be to aim for a double revenge: the recent one linked to the semi-final, and the deeper – and far more important – one linked to last year’s runners-up finish. Yesterday’s semi-final, as widely expected, was stuck in a stalemate for a long time. In the opening stages, a couple of saves by Angelo Casadei on shots from Pellegrini protect the Tre Fiori goal; at the other end Marchetti does the same, with a great stretch to deny a venomous effort from Simoncini. More work follows for La Fiorita’s goalkeeper on a close-range free-kick from Simoncini, who then tries again but fires wide. Gasperoni also goes in search of glory shortly afterwards: his right-footed strike hits the side-netting. La Fiorita dictate the play, while Tre Fiori look to strike on the counter. Razor efforts from Bernardi and Mattioli, both narrowly off target, herald a flurry of efforts against the woodwork. The first to hit it is Bollini, directly from a free-kick: the ball then bounces to Giuccioli’s feet, who tries to turn it in but also finds the post in his way. Meanwhile, Rossini’s bursts forward start to become a serious problem for Stolfi and company. On the first of them, Marchetti beats away the pivot’s thunderbolt at the second attempt. On the second, Verri commits a glaring miss one-on-one with Marchetti, after his team-mate had broken through down the right flank and picked out the No. 7 – left all alone in the area – with the most inviting of assists. Before the half-time whistle there is still time for another La Fiorita effort to hit the frame of the goal: this time it’s Bollini who is denied by the post, set up from central areas by Pellegrini. After the restart Stolfi immediately scares Angelo Casadei with a right-footed effort that goes just wide. In the 42nd minute comes the moment that will decide the tie: Mattioli steps up to take a free-kick from the edge of the area, won by Giuccioli. The No. 99 strikes with power and manages to find a gap in Casadei’s wall. The ball rolls into the net, nestling inside the bottom corner, and it’s 1-0 to La Fiorita. At this point Tre Fiori are forced to abandon their cautious approach. At times, however, they lack clarity of thought. As when a simple error in their passing out from the back gifts Bernardi a clear run at Casadei’s goal, only for him to lack the necessary precision with his toe-poke finish. Alex Bugli’s side resume their game plan, but now it is La Fiorita who double down on their defensive focus and look to counter. It happens again in the 25th minute: Tre Fiori lose the ball in the build-up, La Fiorita break through Stolfi, who is brought down illegally by Simoncini. Second yellow card for Bugli’s No. 10 and Tre Fiori are forced to play 2 minutes a man down. In this spell, La Fiorita prefer to control possession. Once numerical parity is restored, Tre Fiori immediately switch to a flying goalkeeper. A move that, however, has no impact on the scoreline. From then until the final whistle there is time only for Verri’s second yellow card, this time for dissent. And very little else. La Fiorita win, and on Friday will have another chance to claim what slipped through their grasp just a year ago. Here is the play-off picture in the San Marino Futsal Championship

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TRE FIORI Lonfernini, Sabatino, Boschi, Gasperoni, Verri, Rossini, Simoncini, Zafferani, Cevoli, Pelliccioni, Morini, A. Casadei Coach: Alex Bugli   LA FIORITA Zanotti, Zanfino, Gennari, Stolfi, Chezzi, Bernardi, Bollini, Gualandi, Beinat, Giuccioli, Pellegrini, Fabbri, Marchetti, Mattioli Coach: Leonardo Palermino   Referee 1: Gianmarco Ercolani Referee 2: Sirio Lanuti Referee 3: Nicolò Lerza Booked: Verri, Zafferani, Simoncini, A. Casadei Sent off: Simoncini and Verri (second yellow card) Scorer: 42' Mattioli

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