Capítulo 13: Chapter 13: Victory after Victory
Chapter 13: Victory after Victory
On December 23rd, Novara had their last battle before Christmas, playing at home against Virtus Verona at the Piola stadium. The result was an easy 2-0 victory.
On Christmas Day, on matchday 21 of the Italian Serie B, Novara played away against Lanciano.
Lanciano had been a weak team in Serie B this season, almost always at the bottom of the table. However, when they faced Novara, they played exceptionally well.
In the first ten minutes of the match, Novara made a fatal defensive error, allowing Lanciano's experienced forward Manuel Turchi to score the first goal, putting Novara in a difficult situation.
After conceding the goal, the team seemed a bit anxious, but soon players like Bruno and Gonzalez helped Novara stabilize and regain control of the game.
However, Novara didn't manage to equalize until the end of the first half, and they had to go into halftime with a 0-1 deficit.
At the start of the second half, Novara took the initiative and launched several attacks against Lanciano's defense. With Bruno leading the midfield, Novara effectively used spaces on the field and attacked Lanciano's goal from all angles. However, the goal that equalized the score finally came from the center.
In the 66th minute, Bruno combined with Pelticone, and it was finally Bruno who scored the goal to equalize the score.
This goal ended a goal drought of 70 days for Bruno and marked his first goal in 10 league matches.
The draw revitalized Novara, which continued to press Lanciano and dominate the game.
In the 80th minute, Novara displayed excellent combination in the attack, with forward Mohammedi making a header pass to Bruno, who shot directly at the goal from the edge of the area, scoring the winning goal.
Finally, Novara achieved a 2-1 away victory over Lanciano, sending Lanciano into the relegation zone and taking Novara into the top ten for the first time this season.
After 21 matches, Novara had accumulated 27 points, although they had been penalized with 4 points.
However, the battle in the middle of the table was intense. From fifth-placed Modena to twelfth-placed Ascoli, the difference was only 5 points.
The top two teams, Sassuolo and Livorno, were far ahead of the others. Sassuolo had 48 points with 15 wins, 3 draws, and 3 losses, while Livorno had 46 points with 14 wins, 4 draws, and 3 losses. Third-placed Verona only had 40 points, and fourth-placed Varese only had 35 points.
On December 30th, on matchday 22 of Serie B, Novara played against Grosseto at home.
Grosseto, which had only accumulated 11 points after 22 matches and was deeply in the relegation zone, adopted a defensive stance during the match against Novara. This made it difficult for Novara to find effective ways to attack, and Bruno also often found himself struggling up front.
Despite the support of Novara's fans, the players on the field failed to find an effective way to penetrate Grosseto's defense.
Particularly notable was the moment in the 52nd minute when Grosseto's Cameroonian player, Som, received a red card, leaving his team with 10 players. Grosseto defended even more, locking themselves in their own area and challenging Novara to attack them.
However, even by the 70th and 80th minutes, Novara was still struggling to find a way to score.
In the final moments of the match, Bruno was already exhausted, but he still kept fighting.
For the over 10,000 Novara fans at the Piola stadium, as well as for the spectators watching the match on television, and even for the commentators, it seemed like Novara would be forced to a draw by Grosseto.
At this critical moment, Bruno received a pass from Simeoni Pesce, who had come off the bench, on the right side. He then passed the ball to Giringelli, the team's right-back, who sent a diagonal pass into the area.
Giringelli found Mohammedi accurately in the area.
The Albanian forward blocked Grosseto's central defenders with his body and gently returned Giringelli's pass.
Bruno, who was originally outside the area, suddenly slid diagonally from the right side into the penalty area after receiving Mohammedi's pass. He then suddenly accelerated and left Grosseto's defensive midfielder near the penalty spot, skillfully turning around another Grosseto central defender with a body movement, and shot forcefully with his left foot.
"Bruno dribbles past two defenders... and shoots directly into the goal!" "Goal!" "Bruno! At the crucial moment! Bruno charges again and saves Novara!" "One-nil!"
After scoring the goal, Bruno exited the field excited and thrilled.
All Novara fans, including those watching the match on television, and even the commentators, chanted his name loudly.
"Bruno! Bruno! Bruno!"
Novara players also ran madly towards Bruno on the sidelines, surrounding and embracing him.
This unexpected goal meant three valuable points for Novara and also represented a winning streak for the team in recent weeks.
After suffering six consecutive defeats, Novara started a streak of five consecutive victories since the 18th matchday of Serie B.
In a close-up shot on the television broadcast, Bruno smiled and accepted the congratulations from the fans in the stands and his teammates.
In the 85th minute, Bruno broke the deadlock on the field.
And in the 90th minute of the match, Bruno provided an assist for the second goal, scored by Zalari, thus sealing the score at 2-0.
After 22 matchdays, Novara had accumulated 30 points, consolidating their position in tenth place on the table.
At a critical moment in the match, Bruno was the hero who saved the day, and after the match, he received unanimous praise from the Italian media and fans.
The sports newspaper "Milan Sport" even loudly declared that Novara seemed powerless against Grosseto's defense, but at a crucial moment, Bruno proved his worth with a goal and an assist, showing everyone that he had the ability to become Novara's new leader.
"It's in the crucial moments that the true hero reveals himself!"
Thanks to his goal and assist against Grosseto, Bruno ended the first half of the season with 8 goals and 9 assists.
With 8 goals, Bruno ranked seventh in the Serie B top scorers list, while his 9 assists placed him at the top of the Serie B assists table.
Being the only player to appear in both tables, Bruno stood out as the deadliest attacker in Serie B this season.
After 22 matchdays before the winter break, Novara had achieved a decent record of 9 wins, 7 draws, and 6 losses. Without considering the points deduction, they had obtained 34 points and had a goal difference of +10, placing them in fifth position on the table.
Bruno was undoubtedly the main hero behind Novara's success. Of the 36 goals scored by Novara in 22 league matches, half were directly related to Bruno.
For Novara, this half of the season had been an emotional rollercoaster, from surprise to despair and then back to surprise.
At the beginning of the season, Novara, which had been undefeated for 11 matches, filled their fans with hope of returning to Serie A next season. But after six consecutive defeats, Novara's fans fell into despair.
However, just as Novara's fans began to lose hope, the team gave them hope back.
A streak of five consecutive victories took Novara from the edge of the relegation zone to the upper half of the table, making Novara's fans feel like they were returning to paradise.
From surprise to despair and then back to surprise, Novara was like an emotional rollercoaster, seriously testing Novara fans' ability to endure emotional pressure.
Some fans even joked online that pharmacies in the Novara region selling heart pills would be very successful.
(End of chapter)
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