VENEZIA. Spezia topped Venezia to win 2-1. A goal from M. Bourabia was decisive in the 90min. It was Spezia to strike first with a goal of S. Bastoni at the 13′. Then it was a goal in the 59′ minute to make things even for 1-1. Eventually, M. Bourabia gave the win to Spezia in the 90′ minute with a goal. Spezia took advantage of its superior ball possession (56%).

The match was played at the Stadio Pierluigi Penzo stadium in Venezia on Sunday and it started at 1:00 pm local time. The referee was Rosario Abisso with the assistance of Domenico Rocca and Andrea Zingarelli. The 4th official was Luca Massimi. The weather was cloudy. The temperature was pleasant at 24.3 degrees Celsius or 75.74 Fahrenheit. The humidity was 73%.​

Venezia started with a conservative line-up (4-4-2). On the opposite side, Spezia adopted a aggressive formation (4-3-3).

Venezia – Formation

The manager Paolo Zanetti decided to play with the following team: Niki Mäenpää (6.1), Pasquale Mazzocchi (6.1), Mattia Caldara (6.8), Pietro Ceccaroni (7.1), Cristian Molinaro (6.8), Domen Črnigoj (6.8), Antonio Junior Vacca (6.5), Gianluca Busio (7.1), Dennis Johnsen (7.4), David Okereke (6.9) and Thomas Henry (6.4).

The home team had on the bench: Tyronne Ebuehi, Bjarki Steinn Bjarkason, Tanner Tessmann, Mattia Aramu (6.6), Dor Peretz (7.0), Francesco Forte (6.5), Marco Modolo, David Schnegg, Michael Svoboda, Daan Heymans (6.1), Filippo Neri and Sofian Kiyine (6.9).

Best player: Dennis Johnsen​

The player that probably impressed the most for Venezia was Dennis Johnsen.

His rating is (7.4) with 20 passes (80% accurate) and 6 key passes. He was won 4 duels out of 8. He performed 7 crosses.

Spezia – Formation

On the opposite side, Thiago Motta played with: Jeroen Zoet (6.4), Kelvin Amian (7.3), Martin Erlić (6.4), Dimitris Nikolaou (7.1), Simone Bastoni (7.2), Salvador Ferrer (6.8), Giulio Maggiore (7.1), Jacopo Sala (6.6), Daniele Verde (7.0), Janis Antiste (6.8) and Emmanuel Gyasi (7.2).

They had on the bench: Ivan Provedel, Petar Zovko, Mehdi Bourabia (7.6), M’Bala Nzola (6.8), Eddie Salcedo, Rey Manaj (6.6), Viktor Kovalenko, Petko Hristov (6.5), Suf Podgoreanu (6.6) and Jakub Kiwior.

Spezia could not rely on the presence of P. Hristov (injured).

Best player: Mehdi Bourabia​

The player that probably impressed the most for Spezia was Mehdi Bourabia.

His rating is (7.6) with 1 goal, 9 passes (66% accurate) and 0 key passes. He was won 4 duels out of 6.

His performance was remarkable also because he started the match from the bench before entering the filed in the 78′.

Match Statistics​

Spezia was in firm control of the ball 56% while Venezia was struggling with a 44% ball possession.

Spezia was more aggressive with 51 dangerous attacks and 11 shots of which 3 were on target. This is one of the reasons why Spezia won the contest.​

Venezia shot 14 times, 3 on target, 11 off target. On the other side, Spezia shot 11 times, 3 on target, 8 off target.

Cards

Venezia received 4 yellow cards (P. Mazzocchi, A. Vacca, G. Busio and D. Heymans). On the other side, Spezia received 1 yellow card (S. Ferrer).

Standings

After playing this contest, Venezia will stay with 3 points like Empoli and Hellas Verona to stay in the 17th place. On the opposite side, Spezia will have 4 points like Genoa and Sassuolo to stay in the 14th place.

Next matches

In the next match in the Serie A, Venezia will play away against Milan on the 22nd of September with a 0-0 head to head.

Spezia will host Juventus on the 22nd of September with a 2-0 head to head record in favor of Juventus (0 draws).

Results of the day

These are the results of the day in the Serie A.​

• Empoli – Sampdoria – 0-3
• Hellas Verona – Roma – 3-2
• Juventus – Milan – 1-1
• Lazio – Cagliari – 2-2
• Venezia – Spezia – 1-2