Serie B: Catanzaro go in chase of Parma, Sampdoria's win over Cosenza buys Pirlo time

Parma remain at the top of the Serie B table after the conclusion of Matchday 10, but there has been some movement in the places below them as Venezia and Palermo dropped points, allowing Catanzaro to enter the battle for automatic promotion.

The Gialloblu now have 23 points after defeating Como 2-1, but Palermo are two points behind after winning 3-0 against Feralpisalo. The Rosanero slipped down to third after drawing 2-2 with Spezia and the Arancioneroverdi dropped to fourth after losing 1-0 to Reggiana.

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Meanwhile, Sampdoria have struggled in Serie B since their relegation from Serie A, but the Blucerchiati earned a valuable victory against Cosenza after going eight games without a win, and the result takes some pressure off coach Andrea Pirlo.

Vandeputte inspires Catanzaro victory against Feralpisalo

Catanzaro hosted Feralpisalo at the Stadio Nicola Ceravolo on Saturday afternoon in a clash that pitted a playoff contender against a team fighting relegation. Although both teams were winners of their respective groups in Serie C in 2022/23, it is clear that the Calabrians have adapted much better than the Lombards.

After a scoreless first half, Catanzaro turned things in their favour, and Belgian winger Jari Vandeputte made an impact. He opened the scoring after 51 minutes after beating a defender and firing a low shot into the net. Tommaso Biasci doubled the lead in the 74th minute with a diving header, then a cross-shot from Vandeputte was deflected by Loris Bacchetti with the ball looping over Samuel Pizzignacco and into the net four minutes later.

The Aquile now have 21 points, and they find themselves in an unlikely position to challenge for back-to-back promotions. The Calabrians have not been in Serie A since 1982/83, and if they could make their return at the end of this season, it would be an extraordinary achievement.

Borini continues his scoring run to bring Sampdoria and Pirlo relief

It has been a woeful start to the campaign for Sampdoria, who had not won since the opening when they defeated Ternana 2-1 in Terni. The Blucerchiati had gone on to lose five matches in the next eight games and it was clear that Pirlo's attacking philosophy was not producing victories.

After going from the 4-3-3 formation to the 3-5-2 in the 1-1 draw away to Ascoli, the Samp coach changed again for the clash against Cosenza, implementing the 4-3-1-2 with Valerio Verre behind the strikers.

Prior to coaching Samp, Pirlo was at Fatih Karamguruk, and it was one of his former players at the Turkish club that made the difference. Fabio Borini scored from the penalty spot in the 61st minute after Verre was fouled, then he sealed the win nine minutes from time with a thunderous low shot.

Borini has taken his tally to four goals in the last three matches, and this time he earned a crucial win for his team. Sampdoria are now in equal 16th and in the play-out spots with Ligurian rivals Spezia. Could this win turn the tide for the Blucerchiati?

https://total-italianfootball.com/serie-b-chaos-lecco-brescia-reggina-perugia-what-is-happening-latest/

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Serie B 2023/24: Matchday 10 results

Date	Fixtures/Results
Fri, Oct 20	Parma 2-1 Como
Sat, Oct 21	Bari 1-1 Modena
Sat, Oct 21	Cremonese 0-1 Sudtirol
Sat, Oct 21	Lecco 0-2 Ascoli
Sat, Oct 21	Pisa 2-1 Cittadella
Sat, Oct 21	Ternana 0-1 Brescia
Sat, Oct 21	Catanzaro 3-0 Feralpisalo
Sun, Oct 22	Sampdoria 2-0 Cosenza
Sun, Oct 22	Reggiana 1-0 Venezia
Mon, Oct 23	Palermo 2-2 Spezia

Serie B 2023/24: Table after Matchday 10

Pos	Club	MP	Pts
1	Parma	10	23
2	Catanzaro	10	21
3	Palermo	9	20
4	Venezia	10	18
5	Como	9	14
6	Cosenza	10	14
7	Brescia	7	13
8	Sudtirol	9	13
9	Modena	9	13
10	Cremonese	10	13
11	Cittadella	10	13
12	Pisa	9	12
13	Ascoli	10	12
14	Bari	10	11
15	Reggiana	10	11
16	Spezia	9	7
17	Sampdoria	10	7
18	Ternana	10	6
19	Feralpisalo	10	5
20	Lecco	7	1