Hellas Verona-Lecce: a bitter draw for the Apulians with a view to salvation

Verona and Lecce end in a draw at the Bentegodi in a tense, hard-fought and crucial challenge for the salvation fight. It ends 1-1 a match that gives emotions but also regret, with both teams that would have liked – and perhaps could have – brought home the entire stake. For the Gialloblù it is a point that allows them to hook Cagliari at 33 points, while for Lecce the spoils serve to reach Empoli at 28 points.
The match, played with one eye on the present and one on the past – 40 years after Bagnoli’s historic Hellas Scudetto – opens with a balanced first half, but one that sees Lecce find the lead in the 23rd minute: Krstovic receives in the box, turns and beats Montipò with coldness. Verona’s reaction was not long in coming and in the 40th minute it was Coppola, with an imperious header off a corner kick, who restored parity, thanks to a Salento defense that appeared too static on the occasion.
The resumption opens with some changes by Baroni and Gotti, in an attempt to change the inertia of the match. The hosts seemed more determined: Serdar touched the lead with a venomous conclusion, and again Coppola created havoc in the opponent’s area. Lecce responded with Banda, but Montipò was ready.
A nasty scare came midway through the second half, when Gaspar and Mosquera clashed hard: both returned to the field, but the Lecce man then had to raise the white flag due to a new ailment.
The draw serves to move the standings, but the season finale promises to be fiery. For Giampaolo’s Lecce, salvation is still to be won.