Virtus Entella and Verona shared the spoils in a Coppa Italia Round of 64 clash on Saturday evening. The visitors came from behind twice before Andrea Franzoni's penalty in stoppage-time salvaged a point for them. 2:2 was the final score after ninety minutes at the Bentegodi.
Bernat Guiu gave the hosts an early lead in the sixteenth minute, but Mattia Compagnon levelled just four minutes later. Amin Sarr then restored Verona's advantage before half-time with a third goal in the thirty-sixth minute. The game settled into a rhythm that suited the away side's counter-attacks.
And here's the thing about this stage of the competition — teams that have been grinding through pre-season finds themselves tested by opposition with something to prove. Entella's visitors had lost their last outing to Carrarese but had shown they could respond, beating Novara in between. Verona, meanwhile, were unbeaten in five across all competitions, though their only defeat in that run came against Roma back in May.
Verona controlled possession at 54 per cent and registered more attacks, but the visitors created better opportunities. Entella's expected goals total of 1.57 sat above Verona's 1.33, and they managed two big chances against one. Both sides registered four shots on target, but the away side's accuracy was marginally higher at twenty-nine per cent compared to twenty-seven.
The match saw a flurry of substitutions in the second half, with Verona making three changes around the hour mark and Entella responding at the same stage. Niccolò Squizzato and Stefano Di Mario both picked up yellow cards before the break, while Nicolas Previtali collected another late on. The away side's three bookings told you they were willing to fight for every inch.
By then, the game was running out of time. Franzoni's penalty in the eighty-fifth minute put the result beyond doubt, though you could sense Entella's players were already looking ahead. They leave the tournament still standing, and that is often more valuable than a clean sheet in these early rounds.