Genoa – It's a Gila-branded Genoa. Constant growth, a victory “for a granite group”, to use the words of the rossoblù coach, which knows how to exalt itself in difficult moments and which is proving to be a real football team, with a strong identity. We had already understood it previously, the occasions were different, but with Sunday evening's success we can definitively say that this is Alberto Gilardino's Genoa.
There is the trademark of the Biella coach on the 2-1 victory over Salernitana. The conditions for a very complicated evening were all there. The rossoblù show up at the Arechi with only two “real” changes on the bench and go down after just two minutes. It seemed that, after an “adrenaline” eve – here too we borrow the coach's words – the road that led to the most classic of bad Sundays had now been taken. But this was not the case and the fact that the reaction arrived away is the first sign of the work carried out by the coach in recent weeks. Genoa now also scores points away from home. Gilardino worked hard on it, the goal was “to be able to recreate the alchemy of Ferraris even far from Genoa”. Mission accomplished. In the last three matches played away, the rossoblù have collected 7 points out of 9. And the en plein only escaped by a matter of seconds because in Bologna De Silvestri's draw arrived in the 95th. A decisive change of pace because in the first 16 days of this championship the points won away from home were just 4. Pragmatic, chameleonic but now, as the days go by, we also see a team that tries to play in the possession phase. Before, it seemed that, in some situations, the ball was hot between the feet but now, thanks also to the quality and experience of Badelj, Malinovskyi and Strootman, the tune has changed. The goal that brought the match back to par at Arechi is an example: a minute and twenty in which the rossoblù touched the ball 21 consecutive times until the left footed shot that bent Ochoa's hands.
Genoa's other Achilles' heel was the match endings. The list is long: Turin in the first leg, Udine, Naples, Milan and Frosinone to name the most striking examples. The rossoblù lost heavy points in the last 15 minutes and Gilardino has said several times that “a real reason for these drops is difficult to identify”. Something, however, has changed and together with the staff and the more experienced players the trend has been reversed. Except for the exception of Dall'Ara, in the latest outings the rossoblù not only suffer much less but in the final minutes they also manage to be dangerous. In Sassuolo, Ekuban's goal three minutes from time gave the victory while against Torino at Ferraris Genoa finished on a high note, perhaps managing for the first time to close down their opponents in their own half of the pitch. And even against Salernitana desperately seeking an equaliser, Gilardino's team was able to control and manage without risking too much. Credit also goes to the changes made by the coach, another element for which he had ended up under accusation until the knockout in Monza. In Salerno the options were limited but the choice to send an attacker onto the field a few minutes from the end, Ekuban, in place of Strootman, definitely one of the best, served to keep Salernitana as far away from the penalty area as possible Red Blue. «In these last few weeks I have tried every day, with daily input, to convey a sense of belonging, a spirit of sacrifice and the desire to suffer during training – said Gilardino – then on Sunday when you take to the pitch you take these things with you. And what's more, the boys get along well together, they want to sacrifice themselves for each other and a demonstration came against Salernitana.”
The market brought some turbulence but after the shock the three points helped restore harmony. Gilardino is asking for new faces not to overturn this group but to help it grow further. There are all the margins for giving yourself a season finale with great satisfaction. Also because going forward, when “there will be 100% synergy” between Retegui and Gudmundsson, the Gila Griffin “could be devastating”
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