Floriana 3
Plut 46, 51; Farrugia 73;
Mosta 2
Borg 20; Micallef 32;
Floriana scored late to drag themselves back from two goals down for a thrilling 3-2 win over Mosta, yesterday.
Mosta dominated the first half and Adrian Borg and Manolito Micallef gave Enrico Piccioni’s team a double lead.
After the break, Matteo Piciollo, surprisingly left on the Floriana bench, turned the game on its head to inspire the Greens’ revival, serving Vito Plut two assists to level before Brooke Farrugia was on the right spot to score and complete the comeback.
Floriana’s formation featured four changes as Conor Borg, Rodrigo Aguiar, Neil Spiteri and Amadou Samb were restored to the line-up by coach Giovanni Tedesco.
Piccioni also elected to reshuffle his pack at Mosta with Omar Borg restored between the goalposts and Rodrigo Ekani, Kyle Frendo and Sasa Jovanovic drafted back in the starting formation.
Mosta had the better of the early exchanges but their pressure hardly unsettled Floriana.
Pedrinho’s free-kick went wide and the Greens breathed a sigh of relief a few minutes later when he let loose another powerful drive that was deflected into a corner in the last minute.
Yesterday, Mosta seemed too reliant on Pedrinho to unsettle the Floriana defence and on 20 minutes the Brazilian delivered an inviting cross from a free-kick which was headed in the net by Borg.
Mosta’s second goal heaped the pressure on the stuttering Greens. Ekani strode clear from midfield before Manolito Micallef came in from behind to hit low past Valerio Senatore.
With Floriana 2-0 down and lacking ideas, Tedesco brought on Piciollo for Aguiar and adjusted to 4-3-3.
The move paid dividends. In fact, soon after the change of ends, Piciollo played in an excellent cross that was headed in by Plut.
Reinvigorated by Piciollo’s sharp movement, Floriana res-tored parity five minutes later thanks to the fine dribbling of Plut who sped past his direct marker and keeper Borg before depositing the ball inside an empty net.
It was now anybody’s game. Piccioni threw Daniel Mariano Bueno into the fray at the expense of Jovanovic.
The ball flowed from one end of the pitch to the other as both teams tried to gain an edge.
Micallef picked out Bueno at the far post but he headed against the foot of the post.
On 71 minutes, Mosta were reduced to 10 men when substitute Ryan Grech scythed down Conor Borg to end the Floriana player’s venture towards the Mosta box.
The comeback was completed two minutes later. Borg punched away a free-kick into the path of Farrugia and the keeper could only watch in horror as the Greens’ midfielder prodded home what proved to be the winner.
Floriana
V. Senatore-6, A. Scicluna-5, R. Aguiar-4 (36 M. Piciollo-7.5), F. Douglas Cobo-5, S. Pisani-6, Clyde Borg-5.5, V. Plut-8, Conor Borg-7, N. Spiteri-6, A. Samb-6.5, B. Farrugia-6.
Mosta
O. Borg-5, T. Farrugia-5, M. Micallef-6.5, R. Ekani-6.5, A. Borg-6, K. Frendo-5 (81 K. Zammit), K. Magro-6 (58 R. Grech), B. Kaljevic-4, Pedrinho-6.5, N. Milovanovic-6, S. Jovanovic-6 (62 D. M. Bueno-5).
Referee: Marco Borg.
Yellow cards: Aguiar, Magro, Pedrinho, Frendo, Samb, O. Borg, Piciollo.
Red card: Grech (M) 71.
BOV player of the match: Vito Plut