South Tyrol claimed a narrow 1-0 victory over Virtus Entella at the start of the Serie B campaign on Saturday, with Salvatore Davì's stoppage-time strike proving decisive. The result leaves the hosts in seventh place with four points from two games, while the visitors find themselves bottom of the table after another defeat.
The turning point came early when Giacomo Stabile received a red card in the 44th minute, leaving South Tyrol to defend with ten men for the remainder of the half. To be fair, they didn't collapse — they closed the game out methodically, though by then the momentum had already shifted decisively.
Virtus Entella ran the show in possession, completing 52 per cent of their passes and launching 109 attacks compared to their opponents' 63. They created more chances with 13 key passes and 36 crosses, yet big chances registered zero for the visitors — a frustrating evening where they kept knocking on the door without finding the latch.
Davì's goal arrived in the 90th minute, a moment of clarity after 89 minutes of frustration. South Tyrol's goalkeeper made three saves while Entella's kept just one, and the shot accuracy tells the story: the hosts managed 25 per cent on target against 20 per cent for the visitors, with only five shots on target between them.
The yellow cards told of a match that grew increasingly tense — five bookings in total, with South Tyrol taking three and Entella one. The visitors extended their recent struggles, having now lost both opening fixtures after earlier results against Verona and Carrarese.
What matters here is not the possession figures or the attack counts, but the single moment that separated two sides who had been evenly matched in effort. South Tyrol played in driving rain conditions and held firm when it counted — a result that can spring a surprise for those expecting the favourites to cruise.