Serie B: Parma back on top after thrilling draw against Palermo, Venezia slip away to Cremonese

Parma are outright leaders in Serie B again at the end of Matchday 16 after a dramatic draw against Palermo whereas Venezia lost on the road against an in-form Cremonese. The Gialloblu came back from 3-1 down in stoppage time to draw 3-3 against the Rosanero on Sunday, capitalising on the Arancioneroverdi's 1-0 defeat away to the Grigiorossi the day before.

The Emilian club now have 34 points, with the Venetians a point behind and Como on 31 in third. Cremonese are fifth on 29 points, and the Sicilians are eighth on 25, having won just once in their last eight matches.

Venezia vs Cremonese was a rather cagey affair, but Parma vs Palermo was totally the opposite, with goals in each half, quality strikes, and a dramatic finish to top it off.

Brunori magic not enough to stop Parma

Parma had shown some signs of slowing down after a shock 3-2 defeat to Lecco on Matchday 13, and they needed an own goal from Joao Moutinho to get a victory against Spezia in the previous weekend of Serie B action. On Sunday afternoon, they had a chance to reclaim top spot for themselves after Venezia's loss the day before.

Palermo opened the scoring after just three minutes thanks to a spectacular lob from Matteo Brunori, and he doubled the lead for the Rosanero in the 18th minute with a bending shot.

Nahuel Estevez pulled one back six minutes into the second half for Parma with a deflected strike just inside the box, but it seemed that a Jacopo Segre goal with five minutes remaining was enough to give the Sicilians a much-needed victory.

Romanian forward Valentin Mihaila pulled it back to 3-2 in injury time after the Rosanero failed to clear a free-kick properly and he fired a shot from just outside of the box. The Crociati finally got an equaliser five minutes into stoppage time when Adrian Bernabe sent a long pass into the penalty area and Gabriel Charpentier headed the ball into the far bottom corner.

Cremonese improve under Stroppa

Cremonese struggled in the early rounds of the 2023/24 Serie B campaign, producing the type of performances and results that got them relegated from Serie A last season. After five rounds, the Grigiorossi sacked Davide Ballardini as coach and replaced him with Giovanni Stroppa.

Stroppa has taken the Lombard club as high as third in recent weeks, but a scoreless draw against Pisa on Matchday 15 allowed Como and Catanzaro to leap above them. However, facing Venezia was a true test of their promotion credentials and they were able to contain the attacking threat of the Arancioneroverdi.

Despite losing Valentin Antov to a red card after 52 minutes, Cremonese were able to score the only goal of the game nine minutes from time. A corner from the left found its way to Franco Vazquez at the back post. Then, he provided a powerful cross into the middle and Luca Ravanelli diverted the ball into the net from point-blank range.

The victory means that the Grigiorossi stay fifth, but with five victories in their last six games, they remain in the Serie B playoff spots and they are just four points off automatic promotion.

Serie B 2023/24: Matchday 16 results

Date	Serie B Fixtures/Results
Sat, Dec 9	Ascoli 1-2 Spezia
Sat, Dec 9	Bari 2-1 Sudtirol
Sat, Dec 9	Cittadella 2-0 Cosenza
Sat, Dec 9	Cremonese 1-0 Venezia
Sat, Dec 9	Sampdoria 2-0 Lecco
Sat, Dec 9	Ternana 2-1 Feralpisalo
Sat, Dec 9	Catanzaro 2-0 Pisa
Sun, Dec 10	Como 2-1 Modena
Sun, Dec 10	Parma 3-3 Palermo
Sun, Dec 10	Reggiana 1-1 Brescia

Serie B 2023/24: Table after Matchday 16

Pos	Club	MP	Pts
1	Parma	16	34
2	Venezia	16	33
3	Como	16	31
4	Catanzaro	16	30
5	Cremonese	16	29
6	Cittadella	16	28
7	Modena	16	26
8	Palermo	16	25
9	Bari	16	21
10	Sampdoria	16	19
11	Cosenza	16	19
12	Brescia	16	19
13	Pisa	16	18
14	Sudtirol	16	17
15	Reggiana	16	17
16	Lecco	16	16
17	Ternana	16	14
18	Ascoli	16	13
19	Spezia	16	13
20	FeralpiSalo	16	7