Serie A | Lecce 1-0 Genoa: Oudin keeps the dream alive

Lecce proceed their spectacular unbeaten begin to the 2023-24 season with Friday evening’s 1-0 victory over a barely unlucky Genoa, who had performed for over an hour with 10 males. 

Regardless of a resilient defensive shift for almost all of the second half, Genoa have been put to the sword by a late, long-distance effort from Remi Oudin. 

Roberto D’Aversa’s males loved the management of possession within the opening exchanges and started to threaten Genoa in broad areas of the pitch. Because of this, each full-backs, Aaron Martin and Juventus loanee Koni De Winter, have been cautioned inside the opening 10 minutes. 

For the previous, the early yellow would have graver penalties. Martin was despatched off after 36 minutes for a second bookable offence. He’ll now miss the go to of Jose Mourinho and Roma subsequent weekend. 

Genoa have been compelled to drag collectively for the rest of the primary interval, and after a fast trade between Matteo Retegui and Albert Gudmundsson within the forty fourth minute, they recorded the most effective likelihood of the primary half. 

Gilardino known as for a change at half-time: De Winter was hauled off and changed by Johann Vasquez, partly to regulate the crew’s form after Martin’s dismissal, partly to keep away from the chance of ending the sport with 9 males. 

As to be anticipated, Lecce managed the overwhelming majority of possession within the second half and started to pepper photographs from in and across the field, nonetheless, few of them have been trigger for concern for Josep Martinez within the Genoa web. 

Nonetheless, they persevered and Pontus Almqvist got here shut on plenty of events. His properly managed contact and shot from the sting of the realm regarded threatening, however the Swede couldn’t fairly replicate the magic he produced towards Lazio earlier within the season. 

Vasquez was known as into motion shortly afterwards as Almqvist regarded to interrupt away on the fitting flank, however the centre-back obtained the higher of the winger on that event. 

The eventual breakthrough got here after 83 minutes, due to Remi Oudin on his first look of the 2023-24 season. 

The Frenchman had management of the ball 25 yards out, earlier than launching a speculative effort from 25 yards out. His powerfully-struck shot took a big deflection off Morten Frendrup, which was greater than sufficient for the ball to sail previous Martinez and into the close to nook of the online. 

With the urgency to search out the breakthrough not a difficulty, Lecce have been in a position to put extra gamers behind the ball for the closing 10 minutes and weren’t significantly threatened in that point. 

Holding on for the 1-0, Lecce are actually as much as second place in Serie A, though that might change if Juventus and/or Milan decide up constructive outcomes on Saturday. 

Genoa in the meantime sit in 14th having recorded 4 factors from their opening 5 matches of the season. 

Lecce 1-0 Genoa

83′ Oudin (L)

Lecce (4-3-3): Falcone; Gendrey, Pongracic, Touba, Gallo (Dorgu 60); Kaba (Sansone 79), Ramadani, Rafia (Oudin 60); Almqvist, Krstovic (Blin 87), Strefezza (Piccoli 79). Coach: D’Aversa

Genoa (4-2-2): Martinez; De Winter (Vasquez 46), Bani, Dragusin, Martin; Sabelli (Malinovskyi 89), Strootman (Puscas 89), Badelj (Hefti 76), Frendrup; Retegui (Ekuban 76), Gudmundsson. Coach: Gilardino

Referee: Antonio Rapuano