Also in this case, as previously happened with Venice, it is Pisa who open the Serie B championship round by anticipating Friday evening. Not the best especially for those who play away from friends and must necessarily match work and family commitments with the away game. It’s a shame because even in this case Perugia is visiting the city of the Leaning Tower with a supporter base that needs very few introductions, a supporter base capable of moving important numbers, even if in this season the sporting satisfactions do not coincide with the tradition and expectations of the Curva Nord.
Despite the more than relaxed relations between the two fans, the security service is the same as in previous times. The Umbrians are diverted to the car park just outside the city and this choice, in organizational terms, is the best possible from their point of view, given that the area is large and easily controllable. Even around the stadium there is no lack of police forces but the atmosphere is quite relaxed: the home fans live the pre-match with the usual spirit, the companies meet around the Curva Nord and it is teeming with scarves and Nerazzurri flags, animosity and anticipation for the event are at the highest levels and it is pleasant to see how different generations can share not only the curve, but also the moments preceding the actual meeting.
The Umbrians enter the sector intended for guests a few minutes before the start of hostilities, the time to unfold the banners and gather behind them before the teams enter the field and the moment of silence begins for Ilario Castagner, a former player but above all former coach of Perugia of miracles. The one who won the Serie B championship in the mid-70s and later managed to snatch a second place in Serie A that remains in the minds of all Umbrian sportsmen. Perhaps I am not very sensitive but by now in Italian stadiums, for one reason or another, for a person who has written important pages for Italian football but also for a person who is not involved in the world of football, there is a minute’s silence which its persistence has gradually lost its charm and has been practically weakened. For once in a while it is at least observed for a person who has really written important pages for this sport, it is no coincidence that a banner is opened in his honor in the away sector which will then be hung on the window.
Even the Curva Nord opens hostilities with a banner on two floors addressed to the team, the inevitable torches that light up the evening with a glance that is particularly attractive.
The guests decide to hold the banners of the groups in their hands and gather behind them, a winning choice from an aesthetic point of view. The support is well coordinated by the choirs who hoarse to dictate times and words, the response of those present is not bad at all with various choruses that are kept high for several minutes. The red and white ultras give themselves a great deal and if the voice does not fail, as regards the color some flags and several small flags are constantly waved while some clandestinely lit torches complete the picture.
It was Perugia who broke the deadlock on the pitch and took the lead almost at the end of the first half, thanks to a penalty. Strengthened by one more man, the match seems to be going downhill for the Perugian Grifo but in the second half, in just ten minutes, Pisa turns the situation around and literally drives the team crazyArena Garibaldi with the Curva Nord in the lead, delivering a capital performance, where voice and color play their part. The choruses rise without too many problems, in some phases of the game the bleachers queue up to the curve acting as a sounding board while torches and flags always offer their contribution. The match on the steps becomes intense, the two fans put their foot down and the guests get their share of the applause from all over the stadium when they display a banner for Maurizio Alberti.
On the pitch, the match then becomes male, the match director finds it hard to keep the game in hand, the decisive entrances to say the least inflame the match and consequently the audience in the stands which is particularly lively. The final triple whistle rewards the hosts with the team partying under the curve.
Valerio Poli
