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Post by Boony on May 2, 2008 12:56:57 GMT
That just makes me horny...
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Post by Moo on May 3, 2008 11:19:28 GMT
CotD II - the epilogue
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Post by Boony on May 3, 2008 16:45:51 GMT
Season 2003/04 August 2003 Good feelings were running through the club after the success of last year. Everyone connected to the club was proud of the youth policy which has seen a number of young players taking their chances and settling into the first team. Indeed, only two of the eleven were at the club before I was appointed as manager; the rest are all 21 or under. We were looking forward to the next campaign, a season in a more challenging league, but a year further on in the development of the careers of my kids. With every game they are getting older and wiser, and the atmosphere in the dressing room suggests that the team are growing up together and enjoying each other's success. During the off-season, we'd had our first bid for one of "my" players when Udinese offered €60k for striker Vitali. They were told to piss off, natch. My coaching staff had been reduced to two, as other teams had pinched three coaches off me. I decided to replace them all, bringing in Massimo Guarino for shooting and skills, Pierluigi Ronca as assistant manger who will mainly look after fitness and tactics, while Domenico Villa came in as goalkeeper coach. After the late finish to last season's playoffs, our players were a little tired during the off-season. I took the decision to use the Serie C Cup as a pre-season, rather than shorten the rest by scheduling friendlies. After all, cups are for girls and all that. The first game of the season was away at Novara, and our lot didn't look as though they needed a pre-season, winning 2-0 with goals from Giglio and Di Lauro. Casale were the opposition for our first home game, and after 36 minutes were staring at a 3-0 scoreline as Chionna, Di Lauro and Sotgiu capped off some good play. There were a few wobbles during the rest of the game, as Casale pulled back to within 1 goal on two occasions, including a last-minute penalty, but Diamanti had already sealed the game and we ran out 4-3 victors. Two games, two wins, but the next two games were not so pretty. They both followed a similar pattern, with Meda scoring the first goal (Vado freekick against Valenzana and Vitali scoring his first for the club againt Pro Patria) before going on to lose the game with the winner struck in the closing minutes. Pro Patria went on to qualify for the Quarter Finals, and I'm not terribly fussed about going out, although it would have been nice to progress. Maybe we'll treat it more seriously next year.
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Post by Boony on May 5, 2008 20:20:52 GMT
September 2003 The girly stuff is out of the way, and it's time to concentrate on our first season in Serie C1. The board expected us to battle bravely against relegation. To be honest, I'd be happy with avoiding the relegation playoffs. Being involved in the other playoffs would be a nice bonus. There were no major players coming off the youth searches over the summer, so we start with nearly the same team that finished last season. Only an injury to Miglioranzi breaks the status quo, with Goisis coming in to start in central defence. Our first game was at home against Livorno, who finished 5th in this league last year, losing in the playoffs. The first half was quiet, but we livened up at the beginning of the second, and it was a close decision that ruled out Diamanti's goal in the 47th minute. Livorno came back at us, though, and scored twice in the 66th and 82nd minutes to win by two in a game that was much closer than the final scoreline would suggest. Striker Giovanni Santoni was promoted from our youth setup, and rejects the first contract we offer him, so he's currently signed on a rolling basis. The second fixture has us travelling to the town of the leaning tower. Pisa finished 15th in this league last year, and were a team we thought we might steal a point from away from home. Right-back Vado was injured and replaced by Nativi, while Miglioranzi came back in to the side. Our disallowed goal came a lot earlier this time, Chionna's 17th minute strike wiped out by a wave of the linesman's flag. Pisa left it until the 72nd minute to take the lead, and that was enough to start me wondering just how much we were going to struggle this season. Things didn't get any easier as Treviso came to Meda having finished 3rd in previous campaign. Another injury at full-back saw Brescia come in on the left side to replace Nativi, in the team himself only due to Vado's injury. This was Brescia's debut for the club, having arrived in Octobe 2002. The match got off to a blinding start, with Treviso taking the lead as early as the 3rd minute, before Diamanti scored our first goal in Serie C1 just two minutes later. Deep breath, start again. Starting again can only mean that we concede the first goal, and so it happens in the 19th minute, and Treviso took a 2-1 lead which they held onto for the remaining 71 minutes. Three games, three losses, and I'm already contemplating formation changes as we go into the last match in a humbling September. I decided, for the time-being, to stick with the tried-and-trusted 4-3-3 formula which had served us so well so far. Brescia stepped aside because Vado had returned to full fitness, in an otherwise unchanged line-up. The first half was a very tight affair, with each team each just taking one shot on goal. During the second half, Atillio Chionna (whose name reminds me of a rabbit-sized South American rodent) was very unlucky to have been hacked down twice in the penalty area, only to see both decisions given against him as the officials continue to plague our attempt at scoring any goals at all in this division. They must have been distracted when Diamanti scored early in the last game. Possibly by a rabbit-sized South American rodent... Anyway, aside from the two stone-wall penalty decisions going against us, not much happened in the second half as we stumbled across our first point of the season. We were down in 17th place, right in the relegation playoff mire, having taken just one point from four games. Our goal difference was a relatively healthy -4, though, and at least we were doing better than Vis Paro, who had conceded ten goals in four games, and hadn't yet picked up a point.
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Post by Boony on May 6, 2008 0:46:57 GMT
October 2003 September was a pretty bloody awful month, all things considered, but it was early days in the league and I was pretty sure we had the talent and determination in the squad to improve our position during the season. Little did I expect what would follow in October, though... Our first game was at home against bottom side Vis Pisaro (correct spelling this time - I seem to have mis-read my handwriting at the end of the last update), and a 4-0 thumping seemed to kickstart our season. It all started with a corner from Vado which deflected off a defender's head to put us in the lead. You need a bit of luck sometimes, and this was one goal the officials couldn't rule out. Half time came and went, and it took until the 63rd minute before Murante scored our second after a fine solo run. The midfielder put things beyond doubt after heading in a Vado freekick, and Giglio put the icing on the cake by converting a chance from substitute Valentini. This started us on a winning run throughout the rest of the month - sixth-placed Monza were dispatched 2-0 (Chionna, Giglio), fourth placed Lecco were sent on their way with a 3-1 defeat ringing in their ears (Sotgiu, Giglio, Chionna) and Modena (11th this season after relegation from Serie B) found themselves on the wrong side of a Giglio goal just before half time. This spirited run of form lifted us up to fifth in the table, and a large part of the success was down to the form of midfielder Murante. Murante is a well-balanced player, with speed and game-awareness, which brought him two goals and one assist during the month. The upturn in form was gratefully received by all at the club, but I wasn't about to be fooled. Just as I knew that we were nowhere near as bad as our September form showed, I also didn't believe that we were as good as October's games suggested. I was pleased with the way the players showed their resolve after a tricky month, however, and this gave me hope that we'd finish nearer the top end of the table than the bottom end.
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Post by Mr Bismarck's Electric Donkey on May 6, 2008 0:49:47 GMT
Well that was a better month - nice way to bounce back sir!
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Post by Sonic on May 6, 2008 3:20:10 GMT
I'm expecting middle ground in the next update. I wouldn't complain in the slightest if another October came in though.
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Post by Boony on May 6, 2008 6:27:52 GMT
November 2003 So which Meda will turn up during November? Would we continue our climb to the top of the league, or would we plummet once more? The first game of the month was a tricky affair at home against Lucchese, 3rd in the table after relegation from Serie B last year. The game was settled by an own goal, and we were the beneficiaries, as Aloisi's 50th minute strike, past his own keeper, was the only goal of the game. We travelled to Cesena for the tenth game of the season. Cesena were another team down from Serie B, and were currently 13th in the league. We made no changes to the team, which still mirrors the first choice team from the end of last season. The first half was a quiet affair, and it took until the 57th minute for the game to explode. Giglio converted a chance from Diamanti, and then a minute later, Vado's freekick found Murante's head for 2-0. The midfielder turned provider in the 78th as his freekick was put away by Diamanti, and the result was a comfortable 3-0 victory. Six wins in a row, and it all had to end somewhere. Our trip to Spezia was the scene; Goisis had to come into the team to replace an injured Miglioranzi. I knew something was afoot when we conceded the first goal in the 13th minute, and despite Chionna's rapid response and Diamanti putting us in the lead after just 26 minutes, I watched the team capitulate after I switched to a supposedly more solid 4-4-2, conceding two in the last 27 minutes. Miglioranzi was back for the next game, and his freekick fed the ball to Murante, who scored the deciding goal. Chionna had already put us 1-0 up earlier in the game. A quick return to winning ways, as we move up to second in the league. The last game of the month was a road trip to old rivals Cremonese, winners of C2A in my first season, and currently top of C1A. Once again, we named an unchanged eleven, but we started on the wrong foot as the home team scored in both the 5th and 25th minutes. The game turned nine minutes after the second goal, however, as their goalkeeper was sent off. Miglioranzi converted the penalty to grab a goal back before half time. Sotgiu levelled the game early in the second half, and then Chionna found himself with the ball on the hour mark, and calmly slid the ball past the keeper into the back of the net... 3-2, and that's the way it stayed. An awesome result away at the league leaders, which consolidates our position right at the top of the playoff zone, two points behind Cremonese and two points above the playoff line.
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Post by Boony on May 6, 2008 11:24:56 GMT
December 2003 Christmas is coming, the capitalist pigs who own the retail sector are getting fat. December is a quiet month in Italy, due to the mid-winter break. We had time for three games, the first of which was at home against sixth placed Carrarese. There was no reason to change the team from the last game, and so out we went to give the visitors a real game of it. 90 minutes later, despite all our puffing and panting, neither team could find the goals and we shared the points. We had the better of the game, but that won't show in the end-of-season tables. To be honest, I'm happy with the point, as being up here in the playoffs is a complete bonus. We drop down to third place after dropping two points. There's some bad news before the next game, as Sotgiu is out for two weeks, and Miglioranzi is once again unavailable, this time due to suspension. This is where most of my worries come from - the first team seem to be quite happy at this level, but we really don't have a lot of depth in the squad. My depleted team travelled to old rivals Alessandria, winners of C2A last year and currently in second place. Goisis and Valentini came into the side, and we struggled to keep pace with the enemy throughout the game. We were level for all of 18 minutes throughout the game: 13 minutes until they scored the opener, and then 5 minutes between Diamanti's equaliser and their second goal. Chionna gave me hope on the hour, slotting home a pass from Valentini to bring things back to just 3-2 behind, but Alessandria's fourth ten minutes later sealed the deal. Keeper Romellini rated just 4/10 for the game, his first poor showing for a while. I warned him, which he accepted without any comment. Once again, I'm tempted to drop him, but once again I keep the faith. Our final game in 2003 was a home tie against SPAL, 15th in the league. Miglioranzi came back into the team to replace Goisis, and his presence seemed to shore things up a bit at the back. Valentini scored the game's opening goal in the 22nd minute, following on from a parried shot by Giglio. SPAL gave me a few panics when they hit an equaliser in the 76th, but The Diamond struck the winner, having latched onto a pass from Segreto, with five minutes to play. The win took us up to 5th, and back into the playoff zone. We were three points off top spot, and one point above the playoff marker. An average month, but we still find ourselves very much in playoff contention, which is all very pleasing to me. I'm off to eat corporate fat-cats for Christmas dinner...
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Post by Mr Bismarck's Electric Donkey on May 6, 2008 11:33:33 GMT
Thus far, my prediction is spot on...
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Post by Boony on May 6, 2008 11:52:05 GMT
Aye, you jinxing bastard. I hope this dosen't carry on, else I'll be missing the playoffs this year...
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Post by Sonic on May 6, 2008 13:04:59 GMT
Nice work Boo with your pile of Italian :thumb:
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Post by Boony on May 6, 2008 14:13:04 GMT
January 2004 January always starts with a hangover, but for some it's worse than others. I didn't fancy being a part of the Pistoiese setup on their way back from Meda, with a big 6-0 hammer thumping them in the cranium. Diamanti and Chionna scored before half time, and then the floodgates opened as Di Lauro, Sotgiu, Chionna and Sotgiu again completed the rout. Okay, Pistoiese were bottom of the league, but this is the kind of result that can really get things going. Other news from the game was Vado's suspension for yellow cards, and Chionna breaking the club league scoring record, with 36 in his career. We visited second-placed Livorno for the second game of 2004, the 100th league game of Giglio's career. He's the first Meda player to achieve this milestone, and it was nice to mark the occasion with a 3-1 win. Giglio himself didn't get on the scoresheet, but Diamanti, Murante and Sotgiu all scored before half time. They pulled one back after the break, but when one of their defenders was sent off on the hour, the game was effectively over. This result took us to the top of the table, gazing down upon the rest of the Italian lower leagues. The final game in January saw us host Pisa, 17th in the league. Pisa play in Inter's colours, but aren't quite as scary. The game was relatively quiet for the first hour, but then Diamanti burst through and passed to Chionna, who slammed the ball home. That was enough for the three points, and completed a 100% record during the month. We'd climbed to the top of the league, level on points with Alessandria but with a superiour goal difference. Looking at the league statistics, I was very pleased to note that we had the best defensive record in C1A. My only real worry in the team was the form of Abbate, averaging just 6.48 per game. The first choice eleven hasn't changed from the end of last season, and the main performers so far this year are: Goals: Chionna (10) Assists: Di Lauro (6) Man of the Match: Sotgiu (5) Rating: Sotgiu (7.62)
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Post by coffers on May 6, 2008 15:48:27 GMT
Nice going! :thumb:
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Post by Boony on May 6, 2008 22:28:42 GMT
February 2004 A quick note on personnel change before launching into February's action. Abbate's poor form, bizarrely enough, relegated Nativi to the reserves. The thinking is for Nativi to contend with Brescia for a possible opening at full-back, while Abbate hangs on to his place by the thinnest of threads. The first game in February was a road trip to Treviso, who were lying in tenth place in the league. We opened the scoring, a Di Lauro corner finding Sotgiu in the area, who headed in for the lead. Things took a turn for the worse, however, when Diamanti was sent off in just the 29th minute. We then conceded a penalty just after half time, and struggled to hold onto the point. We slipped to second in the table. The next match was against Triestina, in Meda. Triestina were 13th in the league, and we'd hoped to get some points out of this one. A struggle was always on the cards, though, with Diamanti suspended and Chionna tired, so Vitali and Giannusa (for his first game of the season) came into the starting lineup. 11 minutes in, we were 2-0 down and not happy about life in general. Di Lauro found Giannusa with a corner to spark some encouragement, and then Sotgiu levelled things up before half time. As you were, then. Vado was injured in the first half, and was replaced by Nativi. Triestina broke the deadlock on the hour, before Di Lauro provided another goal for Sotgiu six minutes later. The back-and-forth nature of the game meant that there was always likely to be another goal, and indeed there was - Triestina scoring the seventh and final goal of an eventful game to take all three points. We slipped to third in the table. We travelled to Vis Pesaro for the next game, with Chionna and Diamanti back on the team coach and ready to start the game. They combined well in the eleventh minute to take a 1-0 lead, but we're starting to get hit a bit more by opposing teams now, as Vis Pesaro equalise once, and then twice to wipe out Di Lauro's 42nd minute goal. This is becoming a bit more of a struggle, with two points from a possible nine, but we're still sitting relatively pretty in the standings. Monza visited us for the last game in February. Giglio was injured, so Ambrosini (now a grand old 34 years of age) came in to take over the captaincy role, for his first game of the season. The game was a very tight affair, and there wasn't a goal until right at the end; Sotgiu passed to Diamanti who found the back of the net. Our first win in four, and the late goal points towards Ambrosini's strong leadership. This win lifts us back into second place, two points off top and seven above the playoff cut. This is a familiar position for us at this time of the year, albeit one league higher up the pyramid than previously.
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Post by coffers on May 7, 2008 7:43:52 GMT
2nd in C1A? Despite the slip in results it's still a nice position to be in.
KUTGW! :thumb:
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Post by Boony on May 7, 2008 10:46:27 GMT
March 2004 Goals goals goals! That's what happened in March 2004. 19 goals in four games, keeping the crowds entertained, and forcing my blood pressure levels sky high. We started the month comfortably within the playoff zone, and I hoped to keep it that way throughout the month. Game 24 of the league season took us to Lecco, 8th in the league. We stormed the first half - Diamanti giving us the lead in the 15th minute before Chionna replied to their equaliser with two sweet goals before the break. Disaster struck just after the change of ends, though, as Miglioranzi saw a straight red card. Fifteen minutes later, we were all square at 3-3, and that's how it stayed. Disappointing to drop the points, and I'm a wee bit miffed with young Miglio. He's a fine player, but has fitness and on-pitch discipline problems... Modena came to town for the next game. Giglio returned to the side in place of Ambrosini, while Goisis took Miglioranzi's spot in the heart of the defence. Giglio it was who first unlocked the Modena defence, passing to Diamanti to give us the lead. The Diamond scored a second after locating a pass from Sotgiu, and once again we went into the break with a two-goal advantage. Disaster struck just after the change of ends, though, as Diamanti had to be stretchered off the pitch. Giannusa came on in his place, but when we conceded on 75 minutes, all I was thinking was "here we go again". I took off Sotgiu and Di Lauro, replacing them with Valentini and Marini, and the change seemed to do the job as Valentini chipped in for Giglio to score our third. There was just enough time for Modena to score one more before the final whistle, but that was about it. The win made me happy, but the tightness of the game upset me somewhat. I was more upset by the loss of Diamanti for a month. How would we fare in his absence? The short answer is that we would lose the next game. As well as Diamanti's injury, both Baroni and Sotgiu were suspended, so Miglio, Valentini and Vitali all started the game in Lucchese. Despite shots raining on both goals in the first half, somehow we went into the break 0-0. Disaster struck just after the change of ends, though, as Lucchese took the lead. Vitali picked up a knock, bringing in Giannusa, and then Bruni replaced Chionna to make his debut. The substition worked, kinda, as Miglio set up Giglio for the equaliser, but Abbate's 85th minute sending off gave the home team a chance to push on, and two minutes later they scored. We slipped down to fourth in the league... Abbate's suspension gave Brescia the chance to leapfrog Nativi into the first team. The young left-back looks decent going forward - able to run with the ball and cross it into dangerous areas. Vitali's injury brought Giannusa back into the starting lineup, with Diamanti still out injured. Cesena were the opposition for the last game of the month, and for once we got a lucky break as, in the 22nd minute, the visitors were reduced to ten men and Miglio put away the resulting penalty. Di Lauro doubled the lead before half time, Giglio and Valentini completed the rout. Okay, we let in one goal along the way, but it was their only shot of the game. This result moved us back up the third in the table, just one point off top spot and six ahead of the playoff cut. Seems everyone else had a ropey month... Brescia's decent showing in the last game meant that he moved into the first team squad, at the expense of Nativi. He joined the club in October 2002, and now gives me options and balance - the only left-footed fullback, he can attack well and is a decent defender. I still have Abbate to fall back on if we really need to tighten things up at the back, and Nativi is a useful player to have in the reserves. Seven games left in the league, and we're still firmly in playoff contention with a chance of chasing for automatic promotion. Tune in next time for more thrills and spills!
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Post by coffers on May 7, 2008 11:08:16 GMT
Nice progress and only a point off the top spot. Excellent :thumb:
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Post by Mr Bismarck's Electric Donkey on May 7, 2008 11:23:58 GMT
You're ruining my prediction. :moop:
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Post by coffers on May 7, 2008 13:11:37 GMT
You're ruining my prediction. Do you want me to help?
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Post by Boony on May 7, 2008 13:16:59 GMT
I'll accept revised predictions... Coffers - the only way you could help would be to turn back time and make me play the games again. I have all the results written down on several sheets of A4...
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Post by Boony on May 7, 2008 14:24:11 GMT
Unfortunately, I forgot to bring some screenshots in, so I can't write any more today :moop:
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Post by Sonic on May 8, 2008 3:21:59 GMT
3rd, but only 1 point off first? Well done :thumb:
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Post by Moo on May 8, 2008 11:19:39 GMT
This thread is rubbish... too many wins. :moose:
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Post by Boony on May 8, 2008 12:04:39 GMT
April 2004 So this is my third season in charge of Meda, and this is the third April in which we still have plenty to play for. In 2002, we fooked it up. In 2003, we held on to a playoff spot which eventually earned us promotion. This year... April kicked off with a home tie against 14th placed Spezia. The game was a surprisingly close affair, as I expected us to run away with all three points. In fact, Spezia took the lead in the 53rd minute... And, bugger me, we couldn't find a goal from anywhere. We dropped all three points, and plummeted down to fifth spot, the bottom of the playoff zone. We were six points ahead of Padova, in sixth place, when we had to make the journey across the top of the boot to play the Padovans. Miglio suspended once again, while Vitali, Diamanti, Chionna and Di Lauro were all too tired to start the game. That's a fair wedge of the team out right there. We had two goals disallowed in a goalless first half, and I thought that fate was conspiring against us once again. It took until the 66th minute of the game for the first goal to go in, off the boot of captain Giglio. Happily, this opened the floodgates as Sotgiu, Segreto and Giannusa all took advantage against a tiring Padova late in the day. The home side snuck in a consolation goal just before the final whistle, but I wasn't that bothered. Three points away from home against sixth in the table, in the run-in to the deciding games? Thank you very much! A very tricky run of games came next, as Cremonese, Carrarese and Alesasndria were all above us in the table. Firstly, first placed Cremonese came to town. Miglio, Chionna and Di Lauro were all back in the team, despite the result in the last game - this was no time to be messing around with a first choice squad. Or perhaps it should have been, as we shaded a tight game but ended up with just one point in a no-score draw. We were still in fifth place, four points off top club Alessandria, and six points above Treviso who'd snuck up to sixth. Vitali and Diamanti returned for our trip to Carrarese, Giannusa replaced by The Diamond while Vitali warmed the bench. A great team move ended in a Giglio chip to Chionna who scored the only goal of the game in the 49th minute. Three points moved us up to fourth, still four points behind Alessandria but now eight points above the playoff cut, with three games left. Four points cover the top five teams in a very very close finale to the season... The final game in April was a home game against top side Alessandria. The visitors caught us unawares with a goal in the second minute, which somewhat dampened my mood. Chionna latched onto a pass from Sotgiu to level things on 24, and then a freekick from Vado found centre-half Miglio in the area to give us the lead going into the break! With about 25 minutes to play, I brought off Di Lauro and Chionna, for Segreto and Vitali, and the subsitute striker wrapped things up finishing a fine solo run with a fine finish to finish the match in fine fashion. A great victory against the club at the top of the table, and the three points secured our playoff berth. We were now third in the table, again just one point off the top, so April finished much as it started... Two games left to decide the fate of the league, and I think it's worth taking a little took at the table - I've never seen anything like it before... Remaining FixturesMeda: Spal (A) [17th], Pistoiese (h) [16th] Both opponents are in the relegation playoffs, neither is safe from automatic relegation Livorno: Modena (H) [10th], Lucchese (A) [11th] Both opponents are stuck in midtable, going nowhere this year Cremonese: Cesena (H) [12th], Carrarese (H) [5th] Cesena are almost safe from the relegation playoffs, while Carrarese are definitely in the playoffs and could mathematically win the league Alessandria: Spezia (H) [14th], Padova (A) [7th] Spezia are almost definitely in the relegation playoffs, while Padova are definitely stuck in midtable You pick who's going to win the league. I have no fooking idea...
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