Milan Futuro were doing so well, they were really building something. Prior to the first team's injury crisis, their league record was four wins and two losses, and they had two games in hand. Navarro seemed to really be building a strong sense of team unity as well as resilience and grinta that were very impressive. But then Amorim started calling up half the Futuro starting lineup every match. First, for Sunday's draw, where Futuro dropped two points, and now, for this game in hand. Milan Futuro dropped two more points unnecessarily in their 1-1 draw with Pavonese on Wednesday. And none of their players even played for Amorim's side, either. They must really feel like they have entered The Twilight Zone.
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| Stuck in the Twilight Zone. |
After a balanced first half in which both sides created chances, but neither was able to break the deadlock, Milan Futuro came out even more determined in the second half, with chances from both Pandolfi and Asanji. Everything unraveled, though, in the 56th, when Federico Colombo was shown a straight red card for a DOGSO foul (Denying an Obvious Goalscoring Opportunity.) The resulting free kick was successfully blocked. Now forced to play the last 30 plus minutes on ten men, Navarro's men needed even more courage to break through the home side's defense.
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| Pittarella kept the team in the match, even on 10 men. |
Navarro made changes to try to help: Nolli and Plazzotta replaced Cappelletti and Idrissi in the 63rd minute, then 16 year-old Borsa replaced Guernier and Anastasio replaced Bonomi in the 73rd minute. Pavonese did hit the crossbar, but for the third match in a row, the player to make the difference was Asanji. In the 76th minute, from substitute Anastasio's cross, and Asanji was there to send it into the back of the net. 1-0 Milan Futuro.
Unfortunately, being down a man, they conceded an equalizer almost immediately as Faye scored for Pavonese in the 78th minute. 1-1 all. Highlights of the match are available. One minute, they had to feel like they had conquered the 10-man demon, the next, they were helplessly falling into the Twilight Zone. And one cannot help but make the correlation between the seven Futuro players just sitting on the bench for the first team as their teammates struggled: Bouyer, Vladimirov, Perera, Malick Cissé, Silvano Vos, Luca Menon, and Captain Lorenzo Ossola.
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| Asanji's celebration after scoring while Milan were on 10 men was unfortunately short lived. |
Before the first team started creating a waiting list for treatment in Milan Lab, Navarro's men were poised to realistically make a stealth run for sole claim to second place in Girone B once both games in hand were played. But now, they are cementing their sixth place spot having dropped point, and the most they can hope for if they can get back to winning ways is a competitive third place spot with very little room for error. Sure, it is early in the season, but getting promoted requires every point all season long. They went from cruising toward the top to hovering in fear and uncertainty in the Twilight Zone.
Sunday, Milan Futuro will be away to Virtus Verona, and on Wednesday, they will play the second half of the previously suspended match vs. Piacenza (their second game in hand.) Because these matches are not scheduled the same day as the first team's matches, Navarro should, in theory, have those players available who Amorim has been calling up that he has been missing .
This post inspired by the music of Bernard Herrman's "The Twilight Zone Theme Song"
Saturday, October 31 • 20:45 CET (3:45pm EDT)*
Virtus Verona vs. Milan Futuro
Sunday, November 1 • 14:30 CET (8:30am EST)
Milan Futuro vs. Piacenza
Wednesday, November 4 • 14:30 CET (8:30am EST)
Reviewed by Elaine
on
Rating:
