Latvia 2-0 San Marino • newsrimini.it
Under 21, qualifications for Euro 2023 | Latvia – San Marino 2-0
THE TABLE
LATVIA [4-4-2]: Oroli; Toņiševs, Uldriķis, Veips, Birka; Varslavāns (from 68 ‘Zeņģis), Ozoliņš (from 85’ Meļņiks), Korotkovs, Daškevičs (from 62 ‘Kiršs); Lūsiņš (from 85 ‘Meļņiks), Bočs (from 62’ Samoilovs). Available: Soloha, Cucurs, Kramēns, Kokins. Coach: Aleksandrs Basovs.
SAN MARINO [4-1-4-1]: Colombo; Franciosi, F. Santi, Tomassini, Contadini (from 53 ‘Moretti); Matteoni (from 77 ‘
Valentini), Pancotti (from 77 ‘Toccaceli), Rastelli (from 69’ Dolcini), Ciacci, Cecchetti (from 53 ‘Rosti); Saints. Available: Colonna, Pasquinelli, Valentini, De Biagi, Nanni. Coach: Fabrizio Costantini.
Referee: Ivana Martincic (CRO).
Assistants: Goran Pataki and Sanja Rodak Karšic (CRO).
Fourth Official: Zdenko Lovric (CRO).
warned: Cecchetti, Rastelli.
Markers: 22 ‘Bočs, 78’ Lūsiņš.
CHRONICLE AND COMMENT
After two home games, the national team inaugurated the away program by visiting Latvia, also without points after the first two matches, in order against Poland and Germany and played at home, although in different facilities than the Skonto Stadium in Riga, home of today’s commitment. The Biancoazzurrini play with order and
they put on a growing performance, but in the end it was the hosts who prevailed, who hit once in a while.
Ready go and Latvia immediately on the attack. After not even 60 ”, Uldriķis kicks hard from the top of the area forcing Colombo to the first intervention of the day. The touch of the San Marino goalkeeper is not particularly conspicuous but it turns out to be fundamental in sending the ball away; otherwise, the shot would be bagged at the crossbar. At 6 ‘, hosts still dangerous on that side, the right front attack: Toņiševs identifies the right hole to serve in the center of the Varslavāns area, who kicks hard finding the leg of Filippo Santi, perfect in positioning. After a free-kick from the edge that Daškevičs sends on the barrier, Latvia seek glory by making the attacking widers run above all. Not a few balls that rain in the area from the lanes, but Colombo takes care of unraveling every skein with always punctual exits.
Daškevičs has another free-kick opportunity, this time from mid-range: Colombo just needs to stay alert on his post to avoid trouble. San Marino takes courage and begins to raise the lines. At this stage, however, Latvia is also starting to consult the counter-attack territory. At 16 ‘it is precisely in this way that the hosts return to knock on Colombo’s door, once again attentive to the powerful left-foot of the usual Daškevičs. At 21 ‘, Bočs makes the tests of the golsi inserting with the right times in the blue-white area and sending high from a favorable position. Less than a minute went by and Latvia found the advantage by still using the restart weapon: Bočs’ finalization was impeccable, presenting himself at the edge of the area and letting off a very powerful left-handed on which Colombo had to surrender. At 25 ‘San Marino shows himself forward with the punishment dished out in the area by Ciacci and put out not without difficulty from the rearguard of the house; on the rebound comes Tomassini who closes the action with a high destroyed. On the other hand, Daškevičs nearly doubled with a shot that just misses the long post, while at 32 ‘Bočs literally devours it, doubling, sending the ball sky high after Varslavāns had given his teammate an authentic penalty in motion . Except for two personal initiatives by Daškevičs and Birka, both safely thwarted by Colombo, the result falters only in a couple of other circumstances of the half-time whistle: on the one hand it is the left-handed from twenty meters of Pancotti to scare Orols, overtaken by the trajectory of the San Marino captain’s shot like the crossbar – luckily for the home goalkeeper – albeit slightly; on the other hand, a central percussion by Korotkovs gives rise to the double opportunity under the goal of Lūsiņš and of the same number 5: in the first case there is a monumental Colombo who says no, in the second the responsibility lies entirely with the Latvian midfielder, who lacks the practically nothing from a distance.
At the beginning of the shooting on the green mantle there are no new faces. Latvia opens immediately going very close to doubling with Birka, who in the area – and alone – opens the platter too much on Bočs’ precise serve: ball out of nowhere. Shortly after Costantini decides to insert fresh forces: inside Moretti for Contadini, with Franciosi diverted to the left lane; and also Thomas Rosti – on his debut with the Under 21 national team – for Cecchetti. In the meantime, Rastelli takes on a bloody yellow that will force him to skip next Tuesday’s match against Poland. If you fight in midfield, on the two attack fronts the jolts are minimal. At game time Ozoliņš seeks glory from the edge, but his is a lightening shot – which ends very high – rather than an attempt to worry Colombo.
It slips without further acute until the 73rd minute, Latvia finds the field on the right and with a good presence between Toņišev when and Kiršs (who has entered the field in the meantime together with Samoilovs) manages to put in the middle an insidious ball, on which Colombo is attentive . On the other side of the field, San Marino sees itself with a corner kick that the home defense barely foils; as had happened in the first half, the rebound is by Tomassini, who kicks with his left, missing the target by a few meters. Then Costantini also makes Valentini debut, sent to the field with Toccaceli, while a few minutes earlier Dolcini had taken over from Rastelli. Not even the time to tidy up with the two new entrants that the San Marino national team suffers the goal of doubling: Lūsiņš slips very quickly between the shirts of the blue-white defense and with a powerful one leaves no way out to Colombo. In the final, the Latvian national team plays another couple of changes, while San Marino makes a new attempt with Ciacci, who has meanwhile become captain: the stop-and-shot of the blue-white midfielder is elegant, but for Orols there are no particular problems in foiling . In the end, Zeņģis pinches the crossbar in an incorrect Zeis attempt to cross, then Colombo produces a miraculous intervention simply in the tu per tu conlenkovs. Net of this, the result will not be shaken until the triple whistle of Mrs. Martincic: Latvia moves the ranking after two knockouts, while the San Marino national team is already preparing for the trip to Poland, where it will land tomorrow and where it will be on the field on Tuesday. for the fourth commitment of the two-year European period, the second consecutive away from home.
FSGC | Press office