NAT San Marino leapfrogs straight to the top of the group: RAT Hungary beaten after a comeback

NAT San Marino could not have started their home group any better: a sparkling performance and three points in the bag. Three points earned in a comeback after RAT Hungary had taken the lead midway through the first half. Pancotti quickly drew them level and then a lethal one-two from Lisi and Benincasa opened up a gap that the Hungarians only managed to reduce late on thanks to a moment of brilliance from Laczkó – the final flash of an encounter that sends the Sammarinese Selection to the top of the group, level on points with RAT Turkey, who in the meantime defeated RAT Slovenia (1-0). The second match of the day in Montecchio – following the morning fixture – takes a while to catch fire. In the opening quarter of an hour we note a lob attempt from Laczkó that fails to catch out De Angelis and, at the other end, two efforts from Benincasa and Pancotti (the second direct from a free-kick) that both sail over. RAT Hungary try a second lob – this time with Dániel Horváth – but it misses the target. Shortly afterwards, Moretti attempts a hugely risky dribble inside his own penalty area: Dániel Horváth nicks the ball off the Sammarinese No 5, who then wins it back, sending his opponent to the ground. The referee judges that he got the ball, to the great relief of Moretti and his team-mates, while the entire Hungarian Selection erupts in protest. In any case the Hungarians grow into the game and on 20 minutes they break the deadlock from a wide free-kick: Laczkó swings it in, Udvardi flicks it on at the near post and at the far, Lehota pops up to turn it home from point-blank range. NAT San Marino respond, also from a set piece, taken by Pancotti: the defence clears straight to the feet of Lisi, who strikes from the heart of the area but cannot get the better of the red wall standing in front of Szabó. The second attempt from Bizzotto’s men proves successful. Benincasa goes down in midfield after a hefty challenge from Tar; the referee lets play go on and Merli is lightning-quick to pounce, drives infield and threads a delicious pass through to Pancotti, who ghosts in behind the centre-backs and beats Szabó with an unerring left-foot finish. On 37 minutes, parity is also restored in the penalty shouts not given: Ciacci switches play for Bernardi, who beats Laki with his first touch and then goes to ground as the No 2 recovers, the defender’s legs tangling with those of the Tre Fiori player. As before, Mr Thorarinsson spreads his arms and waves play on. The first half ends with Benincasa heading against the crossbar from a Pancotti delivery. At the restart there are two immediate changes for the Hungarians, while Gigi Bizzotto sticks with the same eleven who had grown into the game so well in the first 45 minutes. The very first warning sign of the half comes from San Marino: after just 16 seconds Merli cuts in from the left and unleashes a low drive that Szabó gathers at his near post. RAT Hungary’s approach to the second half is not bad, but they repeatedly undermine themselves with basic errors. As when Tar, under no pressure whatsoever, passes the ball straight to Bernardi, who drives at the Hungarian captain and tries to beat Szabó at the near post: the goalkeeper is equal to it and also neutralises this attempt. On 55 minutes a good opportunity falls RAT Hungary’s way, created by the two players introduced at the start of the half: Szentes works the ball down the flank, Péter Horváth bursts onto it, cuts inside, carves out the space for the shot but produces only a tame, central right-foot effort, comfortably dealt with by De Angelis. Pancotti fares no better with a left-foot strike from mid-range: again the opposing keeper makes an easy save. As the hour mark approaches, NAT San Marino produce the decisive burst of acceleration. The 2-1 arrives from a throw-in taken by Michael Parma: Ciacci returns the ball to the Domagnano player, who comes inside onto his right and whips in a perfect cross for Lisi’s diving header at the near post. With the comeback complete, NAT need less than two minutes to make it 3-1. Once more, much of the credit goes to Lisi, who wins the ball back in midfield, skips a tackle from Szűcs (leg raised and potentially very dangerous), and immediately releases Merli in space. The Juvenes-Dogana player goes through on Szabó but prefers to square it to the unmarked Benincasa, who only has to apply the simplest of finishes to add his name to the scoresheet. RAT Hungary respond with a flying left-foot effort from Péter Horváth – a wonderful strike, but just wide. The Magyars continue their forcing, while leaving plenty of room for Sammarinese counter-attacks. Kelemen gives De Angelis a scare from a corner: the Hungarian centre-back’s header flashes just over the top corner. Meanwhile Bizzotto starts to turn to his bench. Boldrini and Sartori come on first, then Sartini. The latter stumbles on the goal-line after a piece of wing play from Lisi that draws applause: it would not have counted anyway, as the assistant referee’s flag was already raised. Soon after, RAT Hungary pull one back with a piece of individual brilliance from Laczkó, who meets it first time on the volley from the edge of the box and plants the ball right into the top corner, finding the perfect blend of power and precision. NAT San Marino immediately try to restore their two-goal cushion: Sartini feeds Benincasa, who drives into the box and lashes a shot towards the near post, but sends it too high. The Hungarians try to set up a late siege, pushing forward captain Tar, a powerful central defender, but they come up against a very well organised Sammarinese rearguard, which in effect limits De Angelis’ involvement to a minimum. In fact, it is Sartini who carves out the last chance of the match, latching onto a mishit pass from Szabó and striking fiercely from 25 metres: the ball looks destined to drop close to the top corner, but the keeper atones for his own mistake with a strong hand. The final minutes tick away in relative calm, helped by the fresh legs of Michelotti and Babboni. NAT can therefore celebrate their first three points of the group stage and set their sights on RAT Turkey for a top-of-the-table clash to be played – again in Montecchio – on Saturday 16 November at 14:30. That match too, like all NAT home group fixtures, will be broadcast live on Titani.TV.

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UEFA Regions' Cup, Intermediate Round 2024 | NAT San Marino – RAT Hungary 3-2   NAT San Marino De Angelis; Bottoni (from 73' Sartori), Moretti, Gori, Parma; Ciacci, Lisi (from 90' Michelotti); Pancotti (from 79' Sartini), Merli (from 73' Boldrini), Bernardi, Benincasa (from 90' Babboni) Subs: Colonna, Terenzi Coach: Luigi Bizzotto   RAT Hungary Szabó; Laki (from 65' Neubauer), Tar, Kelemen, Szűcs; Lehota (from 65' Fiáth), Bálint; Udvardi (from 56' Ulrich), D. Horváth (from 46' P. Horváth), Laczkó, Bodor (from 46' Szentes) Subs: Csutora, Markovics Coach: Gábor Nagy   Referee: Vilhjalmur Thorarinsson (ISL) Assistants: Ragnar Þór Bender (ISL) and Fatlum Berisha (KOS) Fourth official: Visar Kastrati (KOS) Booked: Kelemen, Lisi, Merli, Bodor, Szűcs, Lehota, Neubauer Scorers: 20' Lehota, 31' Pancotti, 59' Lisi, 61' Benincasa, 86' Laczkó

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