Futsal: teams on court on Thursday for Matchday 17

With the sparkling February Cup now behind us, clubs from the Titan are ready to do battle once again for the second matchday of the second half of the season, moved to Thursday 8 February precisely to allow the National Team players to recover from their exertions at the Labin tournament. The schedule features seven fixtures all on the same evening, with no games postponed and Libertas the only team exempt. The indoor match will pit Tre Penne against Folgore. It will not be the Multieventi parquet hosting the clash between the Biancoazzurri and the Giallorossoneri, but the court in Acquaviva instead. Ghiotti’s side badly need to put an end to a poor run that has stretched to three games. The test, however, will be one of the sternest our league can offer, because second-placed Folgore come into it on the back of seven straight wins and cannot afford any missteps if they are to maintain a comfortable cushion over their closest pursuers. For now, it is premature to speak of a title race, given that leaders Fiorentino, perfect up to this point, enjoy an eight-point lead over the rest of the pack. Michelotti’s team will be in action in Dogana against a San Giovanni side still stuck at the bottom of the table, and which, after drawing with Cosmos, have suffered two defeats in a row, the last of which by a double-figure margin. On the same pitch, in the early game, one of the three teams level with San Giovanni on 4 points, Faetano, will be tested by Virtus, who are coming off a comeback defeat against Murata and are therefore even hungrier to get back to winning ways. That turnaround on Matchday 16 allowed Murata to open up a three-point gap on Virtus. Not only that: Cellarosi’s side have significantly closed the gap on third and fourth place, currently occupied by Tre Fiori and La Fiorita respectively, who faced each other in last week’s head-to-head that finished all square. The chase for a third consecutive win, in Murata’s case, goes through the clash with Pennarossa, who halted their losing streak by beating Faetano and putting a reassuring distance between themselves and the shadier areas of the table. The Biancorossi and the Bianconeri will meet in Fiorentino. Also in Fiorentino, Juvenes-Dogana will resume their campaign after their bye week, looking to repeat the emphatic victory they claimed over Domagnano before the break. The venue is the same, and Roberto Levani will be hoping the outcome is as well. The odds are clearly stacked in favour of the Biancorossoazzurri in a match-up that sees them take on Cailungo, the other team on 4 points, who recently picked up a point by drawing with Cosmos but have not won since 16 October. Juvenes-Dogana, on the other hand, are on a three-match unbeaten run: a draw followed by two wins. Sharing the same latitude as the Biancorossoazzurri on the league ladder are Domagnano, involved in one of the most intriguing ties of Matchday 17 as a whole. The Wolves, fresh from their resounding win over San Giovanni, have reclaimed a spot in the top half of the table and are looking for concrete answers against Tre Fiori, one of the best-equipped sides in the competition, currently third and still riding the adrenaline of the last-gasp draw earned against La Fiorita, who continue to snap at Bugli’s team from minimal distance. The Gialloblù from Fiorentino will be without their coach, sent off in last week’s direct clash. The game will be played in Domagnano. At 20:15, on the same green, La Fiorita and Cosmos will face off. The Montegiardino side will in some way also be playing at a distance with Murata and Tre Fiori, respectively the teams immediately behind and ahead of Gianni Galli’s men, both just a point away. Cosmos are unbeaten in three and will be able to draw on that momentum as they try to overturn a prediction that inevitably favours Montegiardino. Among the motivations that could further fuel the Gialloverdi is the prospect of overtaking Libertas by capitalising on the Granata’s rest day. Here is the Matchday 17 schedule: Click here for the updated table

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