Series B Playoffs, Sunday, 02.06.2024
The first leg could only end in a draw. The two evenly matched teams faced each other in an identical 3-5-1-1 and each featured a striker who had won the Serie B cap once in the last two years.
It remains a hairy affair, but the return of the initially rested Francesco Zampano and the home advantage should swing the pendulum in favor of the “Arancioneroverdi”.
I won’t try to convince you otherwise in my Venice Cremonese tip
The first leg is over and ended with a nil-number that Cremonese cannot be satisfied with.
Admittedly, they did not create enough chances to justify a 1-0 win, but given the rules, this draw is almost tantamount to a defeat.
That definitely adds to the pressure! Because according to the rules, there would be no extra time in the event of another draw, but the team with the higher ranking in the regular Serie B season would be promoted: Venice!
Short review: Venezia won their league match against Cremonese 2-1 at home in April after turning around a deficit. Now the Venetians only need to avoid defeat in the second leg on Sunday to return to Serie A at the second attempt.
On their way back to the country’s top flight, the Arancioneroverdi have beaten Palermo in the play-off semi-finals with back-to-back victories in the first and second legs.
Venice are undoubtedly in good form! Paolo Vanoli’s side have now won six of their last nine games.
Speaking of Vanoli, the head coach was once Antonio Conte’s assistant at Chelsea and Inter Milan. His knowledge of soccer to date should pay off for the Veneziani.
Cremonese, however, remain an opponent to be taken seriously! Because although they failed to make a breakthrough on Thursday, the Grigiorossi are unbeaten in six games (3 wins, 3 draws).
The Lombard club have also won half of their 20 away games in the league this season – enough to boast the second-best away record in Serie B.
So far, so good! However, Cremonese have only won one Serie B game at the Stadio Pierluigi Penzo since 2017.
Also interesting: Both sides scored at least once in all of those five point games. Another clean sheet therefore seems to be out of the question
After Francesco Zampano was rested in the first leg – apparently for fear of a ban, from which the winger was only one yellow card away – Venezia coach Paolo Vanoli should be able to call on his reliable regular on Sunday.
While Zampano will therefore play on the left wing, the scorer of the semi-final, Antonio Candela, will be on the right. The two US internationals Gianluca Busio and Tanner Tessmann will form the Veneziani’s midfield axis.
Nicholas Pierini, meanwhile, is once again expected to support the dangerous Joel Pohjanpalo in attack, the top scorer of the 2023/24 Serie B season
Despite 10 players facing yellow card suspensions on Thursday, both teams have avoided anyone missing out on Sunday through yellow card suspension.
As a result, only Ghanaian striker Felix Afena-Gyan and Senegalese goalkeeper Mouhamadou Sarr – both injured – will be missing for Cremonese.
As always, Giovanni Stroppa has several candidates to choose from in attack: Massimo Coda scored 17 goals in Serie B this season, but Frank Tsadjout or Daniel Ciofani could also be an alternative for the center forward position.
With a look at the betting program of various European Championship bookmakers, I would advise you to select a double chance 1X bet.
The Veneziani have hardly lost a single point game at home this season and are also highly motivated not to let anything burn in the second leg.
In addition, however, I would also like to include a both teams meeting tip on the betting slip, as Cremonese will have to play much more offensively than they did last Thursday.
The combination of these two events on the same betting slip would give you odds of around 2.18, which I personally wouldn’t say no to
Conclusion: According to the rules, the hosts only need a draw to reach Serie A. Venezia can therefore afford to draw Cremonese out and counter-attack with clinical pace.
Although it will certainly be a hard-fought duel, the Veneziani have only lost three times at the Penzo this season and also appear to be the slightly better team.
I expect goals on both sides on Sunday, but also an outcome – whether a draw or a home win – that will see the home side promoted along with Parma and Como.
In summary, my Venice Cremonese betting tip is: Double chance 1X & Both score
