[Northwood_DK]

USD Novese
The legacy of Vittorio Pozzo

APRIL 2017

new month, new opportunities. We need to win some games as we can not hope for our opponents bad form to continue.

We have 15 contrats running out at the end of the season with Massimo Lucarelli still being the most important name on the list.
He is still unwilling to resign.
The rest I don't care much about.

I offer new contracts to most of the staff.

@ U.S. Fezzanese #12
We finaly gets off to a good start and scores on our first attack. It's DC Antonio Silvestri who is last on the ball after a corner.
We are back to level after just 15 minutes.
And that's the way it looks like ending all the way until two minutes into extra time. Massimo Lucarelli (9.0 Rat. and PoM)makes his second assist of the day and find Nicolò Condorelli for his 4th goal of the season.

We loss Brice Bonelli for 3-4 weeks with a groin strain. We also loss 33 year old Andrea Doardo for 2-3 months with a knee injury.
We decide to release him.
It's a tough business being a semi professional footballer.

@ Chieri #8
It's the third road game in a row.
No shots on goal by either team in the first half.
In the end it's the old well known combination that comes thru for us. Massimo Lucarelli to Denys Zhytarchuk after 80 minutes and the win is a fact.
Again, it was not pretty but we are now up to a new team record 12 games without a loss.

Pro Settimo & Eureka is one of the team playing with one striker but three AMC just behind him. This is team and formation we have struggled with in the past and I got for a formation with a DMC instead of an AMC.

The starting lineup looks like this:
GK - Michael Vezzani
DL - Davide Sala
DC - Antonio Silvestri & Armando Sykaj
DR - Francesco Savarise
DMC - Luca De Feo
ML - Nicolò Condorelli
MC - Pasquale D'Addio & Pasquale D'Addio
MR - Massimo Lucarelli
ST - Denys Zhytarchuk

@ home vs. Pro Settimo & Eureka #15
The first half is not pretty with both teams struggling to get away shots.
Denys Zhytarchuk is replaced after an hour and Luigi Mentana is brought on instead. 10 minutes later I sub the DMC De Feo and replace him with an AMC Vincenzo Perna.
It take only 8 minutes before we see results when Luigi Mentana scores in the chaos after a free kick.
Just three minutes later we are rewarded a penalty. The referee say that Nicolò Condorelli is tripped but even I have a hard time seeing that. Vincenzo Perna makes no mistake from the spot.
We get a solid 2-0 win and both goals are scored by players off the bench.
Nicolò Condorelli is voted PoM with a solid 9.0 Rat.

We have now won three games in a row and not lost for 13 weeks but we still can't get away from S.S.D. Argentina Arma who have also not lost in 8 weeks.
We are still tied on points.

In training during the week Luca De Feo is injured (again). This time it's a serious knee injury and he will be out for two months. At christmas he was also out for two months with a shoulder injury.

Luigi Mentana played good last week so i decided to put him up front with Zhytarchuk in a 4-4-2 formation.

@ home vs. Caronnese #6
Denys Zhytarchuk got a chance to put us ahead after just 3 minutes but misses the goal completely.
Then we manage to give up two goals in just four minutes. One from a corner and one from a freekick.
We take a few shot before the break without creating much.
We are in trouble.
Down one at the break and S.S.D. Argentina Arma is also in trouble in their game.
A minute into extra time Denys Zhytarchuk scores from 30 yards out. Not like him to score on a long shot, but I take it.


I sub a bad playing DM Antonio Silvestri with Riccardo Lucarino.
We play better in the second half.
In the 81st minute we score the equalizer. Massimo Lucarelli puts the ball into the top of the net from the edge of the box. Great goal.
We go ultra defensive and protect the one point. Thats enough for us with S.S.D. Argentina Arma losing 0-3 on the road to Ischia Isolaverde. We are one point clear on top of the table with just four games left to play and none of them against top-10 teams.

I decided to go with the same team and same formation in the last game of the month.

@ home vs. Sporting Bellinzago #13
We have three shots on goal within the first 11 minutes but no goal to show for it.
Then it's Sporting Bellinzago taking over, creating several chances but they also struggle with the final touch.
2 minutes before the break we get a penalty when Luigi Mentana i brought down.
No mistakes by Zhytarchuk who puts the ball hard in the middle of the goal. I don't think we have missed a penalty since I took over as manager.
Lets keep it that way.
At the break we switch to counter and moves Mentana back to AMC again.
We own the ball in the second half.
After 73 minutes Gianmaria Cucurnia scores our second of the day and his just second of the season. That's settles it and we can cruise the last 15 minutes.

S.S.D. Argentina Arma only draws 1-1 against the worst team in the league and it's now A.C. Bra closest behind us with three games to go.

Month end standing
U.S.D. Novese 69 p
A.C. Bra 67 p
S.S.D. Argentina Arma 66 p