Futsal: Libertas and Faetano upset the odds, Cosmos complete comeback in the 60th minute

The first half of the Preliminary Round of the futsal championship is anything but short on surprises. In fact, two of the four first-leg ties end in wins for the lower-ranked side. Another finishes level, while only one fully confirms what the regular season standings had suggested. Starting with that one: Pennarossa take a huge step towards the quarter-finals with a 4-1 victory over Cailungo. Timpani opens the scoring before the first minute has even elapsed. Verri doubles the advantage in the 7th minute, but Cailungo respond immediately, pulling one back through Meloni for 2-1. It proves not to be the start of a red-and-green comeback, just a bump in the road for Pennarossa, who restore their two-goal cushion after the break through Stefanelli (33’) and then seal the win in the closing minutes thanks to Tamagnini (58’). The clash between Domagnano and Cosmos – also played in Domagnano, just like Pennarossa-Cailungo – is equally eventful at both ends. In this case, Hidri needs only a few seconds before beating Delvecchio, who is then beaten again on 9 minutes by Vagnini. Domagnano appear to have things under control, but in the second half they quickly use up their foul bonus. That proves decisive because in the 60th minute – in the very last action of the match – Molinas scores from a 10-metre free-kick, thus completing Cosmos’ comeback, which he himself had started in the 52nd minute. A draw that is not overly surprising, given how close Gasperoni’s and Franchino’s sides had finished in the previous phase of the competition.

What really does raise eyebrows, though, is the 3-0 win recorded by the lowest-ranked side of all – Faetano – against the best-ranked team, Folgore. Selva’s men take a massive step towards the quarter-finals, opening the scoring on 11 minutes through Calzolari before tightening their grip on the victory thanks to further goals from Luca Fortunati on 41 minutes and Rossi on 59 minutes. That is not the only twist to play out on the Fiorentino pitch. Libertas also overturn the odds with a 4-2 success over Juvenes Dogana. The star of the night is Selva: the grenata pivot scores three times, starting his show in the 5th minute and repeating the feat in the 9th, before Elia Michelotti makes it 3-0 to Libertas. Juvenes Dogana then respond and pull one back through Simone Celli. But Libertas are not done: in the 27th minute Selva completes his hat-trick, while in the first minute of added time Amati saves the second 10-metre free-kick awarded to Juvenes Dogana, after Simone Celli had put the first one wide. After the break Cavalli makes amends by scoring for 4-2, a scoreline that remains unchanged to the final whistle, despite Juvenes enjoying 2 minutes of numerical superiority following Gasperoni’s sending-off. In the evening reserved for the second legs – on Thursday 14 May – Cellarosi’s side will need to win by at least two goals. Folgore, for their part, need three, and Cailungo even four. It is all to play for between Cosmos and Domagnano, although in theory the latter could afford to settle for a draw.

This is the partial picture of the Preliminary Round of the championship so far: