Venice-Fiorentina 2-4, Mastantuono show, Fiorentina breaks the deadlock in Venice

The match

by Lorenzo Padovan

Mastantuono enchants, scores his first hat-trick in Serie A and crushes Venezia, who remain inexorably stuck at 0 after 4 games. Stroppa's position begins to become dangerous with the fans who contest the team under the curve. Vanoli, on the other hand, begins his second adventure in Viola with a match in which he healed all the departments in one fell swoop. At the start Stroppa already has his men counted in defence, where Haps moves back and launches the former Moreno. Up front he relies on the Yeboah-Adams attacking tandem. Vanoli bets on the baby Mastantuono with Beto as center forward, inspired by Fagioli and Ndour, protagonists of his miraculous salvation last year. Fiorentina starts strong with Mastantuono: the playmaker drinks Haps and finishes from two steps with a sure shot, but Moreno intercepts in the corner when Stankovic is beaten. The Viola are under constant offensive pressure and in the 19th minute Jimenez throws away an assist which also came from the inspired Argentine talent who had put him face to face with Stankovic: the diagonal ends up at the back. Two minutes pass and Venezia surprisingly takes the lead with their first shot towards goal. Busio leads a counterattack and puts Adams in a position to shoot from the edge, with the visiting defense distracted: the center forward's right-footed shot ends up in the seven.

Fiorentina didn't have it and found the equalizer in the 29th minute. Mastantuono once again carries the guest attack on his shoulders. After receiving the ball on the left, he leaves Sagrado in place and passes a slightly reactive Stankovic to the near post. The hosts feel the pinch and about forty seconds after the restart of the game from midfield they go down with yet another overwhelming action by the 19-year-old Argentine, on loan from Real Madrid, who this time chooses the other corner with the diagonal. The ball kisses the post and goes home obediently after running along the goal line for a while. Venezia are on the ropes and in the 41st minute Beto would have the knockout blow: served directly by De Gea, he takes off all alone, but Stankovic saves his team with a desperate save with his foot. It's raining and wet: before the break Stroppa also loses Busio due to injury. Venezia leaves the locker room with a different spirit: the inertia seems to have changed and in the 14th minute Yeboah wastes it from an excellent position with a high conclusion. Vanoli resorts to the bench: former Udinese players Atta and Beto are out and Gnonto and Pellegrino are in. The move pays dividends immediately.

With Venezia projected forward, in the 22nd minute Pellegrino, assisted by Fagioli, takes off on the counterattack with Moreno struggling behind him. The Argentine center forward in front of Stankovic is glacial and scores with a left foot. Stroppa also had to throw Juan Jesus into the fray for the injured Moreno, on the flank Sagrado - who Mastantuono had given a migraine - came out for Correia. Helgason doesn't want to give up and in the 31st minute he unleashes a whip from the edge which De Gea has to dive for. Venezia is no longer there, in the 39th minute Mastantuono scores a hat-trick and takes the ball home: from two steps away he tries to pass Stankovic, who instinctively deflects right onto the chest of the playmaker whose chest touch inflates the net. A minute later it was Hainaut who made the defeat less bitter with an excellent volley from the center of the area.