Como Women defeated 3-0 at Sassuolo: the Larians stop after four positive results

The match between Sassuolo and Como Women, valid for the seventh round of the Serie A women's eBay Poule Salvezza, took place. At the 'Enzo Ricci' stadium, Sassuolo won 3-0, stopping the streak of four positive results for Stefano Sottili's team.

The first half was complicated for Como Women, who found themselves three goals down at the Sassuolo ground by the end of the first 45 minutes. An uphill start for the 'Larians': in the 2nd minute, a defensive misunderstanding between Kramzar and Hansen left the door open for Clelland, who took advantage coldly and scored with a left foot shot, putting the 'Neroverdi' ahead. Sassuolo kept pressing and nearly doubled their lead in the 28th minute with a header from Doms off a right-wing cross by Dhont, but Gilardi was alert and blocked it without too much trouble. On the counterattack, Como Women had their first real chance: Guagni found space in the area and tried a right-foot shot, but Durand deflected the attempt. Seconds later, Sassuolo struck again: in a quick counterattack, Rossi's players exploited a two-on-one with Dhont serving Clelland, scoring her personal brace with an easy tap-in for 2-0. The third goal came in the 37th minute: from a corner kick scenario, Clelland hit the crossbar, but Gallazzi was quickest to pounce on the rebound and pushed the ball into the net. Late in the half, Sassuolo nearly scored a fourth with Dhont beating Gilardi in his attempt to come out, but Hansen providentially saved on the line. In full stoppage time, Como Women tried to respond with an initiative from Kramzar, who attempted a left-footed shot from outside the area, but the ball went high over the bar.

The beginning of the second half seemed promising for Como Women, who raised their rhythm and tried to be dangerous up front. Early on, Kerr managed to score what seemed to be the 3-1 goal, but the joy was immediately extinguished by the assistant referee's flag signalling offside. In the 53rd minute, Sassuolo tried with Perselli, delivering a treacherous low shot, forcing Gilardi to make a save and send the ball out for a corner. In the 71st minute, Kramzar tried with a powerful but central left-foot shot, which Durand confidently dealt with. The Slovenian persisted and, moments later, tried again with a more angled shot, which went wide. In the closing stages, Sottili's girls tried to make the defeat less severe, but the score remained as it was at the end of the first half, with Sassuolo winning 3-0.

The Larians' next commitment will be next weekend against Lazio at the 'Ferruccio' stadium in Seregno.

Post-match Statements

These were the words of captain Giulia Rizzon at the end of the game: "We came from four positive results, and today we fell. It's part of a journey. We certainly haven't improved on the issue of our approach to matches. The first two goals came from our individual mistakes: we made life and the game complicated for ourselves. We had our chances, but then it's difficult to pull back a game when, indeed, we make the mistakes. There's regret for the many mistakes we made. Certainly, these matches will be useful to find that extra motivation needed to win them, in a championship where at the moment we can only aim to earn more points. However, I believe that a match like this serves to build a better future and to learn from mistakes."

Stefano Sottili's commentary on the match: “The error at the start? It certainly affected the course of the game. The fact is that there was a whole match to be played. We started with the handicap of a goal conceded in the 2’ and we also gave away the second goal. Every time we had the chance to reopen the game, we were not good, concrete, or lucky enough to do so. Today’s match must help us grow and make us understand that matches must always be played with a certain kind of attitude, regardless of the incident that can change the result. Sometimes in the past, we have been good, other times less so, in not being affected by the episode: we need to grow because performance shouldn’t be dictated by episodes. These can affect the result, but we could have done better, in my opinion, in ball management, personality, and our play methods. Instead, we were always, especially in the first half, fearful. And all the premises and conditions are here to play boldly and with courage. The team is already safe, we have goals to achieve by making points, but to score points you need to play like the girls have often played in the past: with courage and the desire to attack the space. And we must be good at doing this in the next three games.”

On the next league day against Lazio: “We prepare matches always with the aim of trying to do our best and try to win. That doesn’t take away that there is an opponent, and therefore many times you have to adapt to the strength of the team you will face. But the match will be prepared in the same way and we know that if we want to finish sixth, or at least stay in the race, it is a match not to be lost. Because it is true that Lazio has three points more, but it is also true that they have one more game. So we must be aware of this. We will prepare it in the best way possible in terms of performance to try to bring home the win.”

Match Summary

Sassuolo line-up: 16 Durand; 8 Brustia, 20 Orsi, 5 Caiazzo, 23 Fusini (83’ De Rita); 11 Fisher (73’ Hagemann), 18 Gallazzi, 6 Doms; 26 Clelland (90’ Monterubbiano), 30 Perselli (73’ Chmielinski), 13 Dhont (82’ Sabatino). Coach: Gian Loris Rossi

Available: 1 Lonni, 4 Pleidrup, 15 Brignoli.

Como Women line-up: 22 Gilardi; 2 Marcussen (67’ Bergersen), 24 Rizzon, 4 Hansen (46’ Sagen), 3 Guagni (46’ Karlernäs); 33 Kramzar, 20 Vaitukaityte (46’ Engman), 21 Picchi (59’ Conc); 7 Nischler; 28 Kerr, 9 Del Estal. Coach: Stefano Sottili

Available: 12 Aprile, 13 Liva, 23 D’Agostino, 25 Marchiori, 36 Soggiu, 44 Bou I Salas.

Goal Scorers: 2’ and 29’ Clelland (Sassuolo), 36’ Gallazzi (Sassuolo)

Yellow Cards: Brustia (Sassuolo), Hagemann (Sassuolo), Sabatino (Sassuolo)

Red Cards: 0

MVP: Clelland (Sassuolo)

Referee and Assistants: Simone Gauzolino, Vincenzo Marra, Gregorio Maria Galieni and Roberto Carrisi.