Soccer: I became Bruno Fernandes.

Chapter 23: Novara is Not Yet Satisfied!

After the 35th round of Serie B, the results were mostly as expected, but the overall situation in the league became quite chaotic. Originally clear championship battle became uncertain again due to Sassuolo's defeat, bringing the suspense back.

In the leaderboard, Sassuolo, with 22 wins, 7 draws, and 6 losses, scored 73 points, still holding the first place. However, their lead was reduced to just 4 points, with Novara also reaching 22 wins, 7 draws, and 6 losses, but due to a points deduction, they only had 69 points.

If the deduction wasn't considered, Novara would have effectively overtaken Sassuolo, as Sassuolo's goal difference was 34, compared to Novara's 43.

Despite Sassuolo maintaining a 4-point lead, given Novara's red-hot form, it was uncertain how long Sassuolo could maintain their advantage. Verona and Livorno, close behind the two teams, also showed strong momentum.

After defeating Ternana 2:1, Verona's points rose to 67, only 6 points behind the leader Sassuolo. Similarly, Livorno reached 67 points after defeating Ascoli 3:0.

With 7 rounds remaining in the league, both Verona and Livorno re-entered the race for the league championship.

Thus, Novara's successful block against Sassuolo knocked down the nearly secured champion, adding many more interesting points to the following matches in Serie B.

The championship suspense rekindled, and the battle for playoff qualification spots became dazzling. Empoli, at fifth in the league, had 57 points, and Varese, at sixth, had 52 points, followed by a huge group from the seventh place Brescia with 49 points to the nineteenth place Ascoli with 40 points. This crowded space included thirteen teams.

With 7 rounds left, these fifteen teams could potentially end up in the top six. Middle-tier teams, if they hit a streak of wins, could climb up the ranks; conversely, a sudden slump could send them plummeting.

For instance, Ascoli, now nineteenth, was within the top ten ten rounds ago, nearly reaching the playoff spots. Who would have thought they'd drop to nineteenth?

However, Ascoli, even at nineteenth, seemed to face little relegation risk. This was because the bottom three teams were very stable; the twentieth-placed Vicenza had only 32 points, 8 less than Ascoli.

Given Vicenza's poor performance this season, turning things around in the remaining 7 rounds seemed like a fantasy, not to mention the second-last Vercelli with 28 points and last-placed Grosseto with 23 points.

Although many expected Sassuolo might lose to Novara, given Novara's seventeen consecutive wins, nobody anticipated Sassuolo's loss would be so straightforward, even somewhat disastrous. After all, five months ago, they had strongly defeated Novara at home.

If someone who loved making historical remarks saw this, they would be excited to note: "How fortunes reverse, so does the effort!"

In fact, in the East, some fans after watching this match already sang: "It's not that I don't understand, it's that the world changes too fast!"

But regardless, Sassuolo's loss to Novara was a fact.

Many had hoped to see Sassuolo block Novara, but instead, Novara strongly defeated their rival, stopping Sassuolo's march towards the championship.

With Sassuolo's strength unable to halt Novara's progress, who could defeat Novara and end their winning streak? Would it be relegation-struggling Vicenza, or Livorno who still harbored championship hopes, or Modena fighting for a playoff spot, or someone else?

Given Novara's unstoppable momentum, it seemed difficult for anyone.

Could it be as "Milan Sports Daily" suggested, that everyone must wait until Novara decides to stop their own advance?

But Novara soon answered themselves: "Our vengeance is not yet complete; Novara has not yet won enough!"

On April 13th, during the 36th round of Serie B, Novara faced the relegation-bound team Vicenza at Piola Stadium.

Perhaps because the victory over Sassuolo had boosted Novara's morale, or for some other reason, they seemed somewhat listless in the first half against the weaker Vicenza, who played more proactively away from home.

In the 27th minute of the first half, Vicenza scored through a header from tall center-back Matteo Gentile, loaned from Atalanta, from a set-piece.

This woke Novara up, who then retaliated and equalized in the 41st minute through Bruno's assist to midfielder Flavio Lazzari.

During halftime, Coach Tesser sharply criticized the team's first-half performance, demanding a more serious approach in the second half. He warned that anyone not fully engaged would be substituted.

Bruno also encouraged his teammates to take Vicenza seriously. In their last three encounters, Novara had lost two, including a 1:2 loss earlier this season, which was part of a four-game losing streak.

Bruno stated he did not want the team to capsize in the gutter after beating Sassuolo by losing to Vicenza.

After the break, Novara fans displayed a banner in the stands with the score from their 1:2 loss to Vicenza in round 15, shouting for revenge.

The halftime locker room talk, combined with seeing the fans' actions, fired up the Novara players, who launched a fierce attack on Vicenza's goal.

Even teams like Sassuolo, Verona, and Livorno couldn't withstand such an onslaught from Novara, let alone Vicenza, which had been struggling in the relegation zone all season.

In the 55th minute, Bruno made a precise through pass to Gonzalez in the box, who was about to shoot but was pushed down by a Vicenza defender, earning Novara a penalty.

Since both Captain Rubinho and Vice-Captain Rudi were not playing, the captain's armband-wearing Bucchi took the first penalty, easily sending the ball into Vicenza's net.

2:1, Novara took the lead.

In the 70th minute, Novara struck again, with Argentine forward Pablo Gonzalez receiving another accurate pass from Bruno and scoring close-range.

3:1, Novara secured the victory!

After the match, Novara fans gathered in the stands, unwilling to leave, chanting together:

"Novara has not yet won enough!" "Novara! Forward!" "Champions!"

News came from Mapei Stadium; Sassuolo was held to a 1:1 draw at home by Brescia!

Sassuolo had 74 points, Novara 72—championship was still in sight!

Additionally, Livorno, who also won, reached 70 points. Verona, who drew, showed signs of bowing out early.

On the evening of April 17th, Novara visited Aldo Spinelli Stadium, challenging their title rivals Livorno.

This was the last match of the 37th round and the focus of this round.

A day earlier, Sassuolo had beaten Reggiana 2:0 away, temporarily widening the gap. Thus, for both Novara and Livorno, this match was a must-win, as a loss would mean virtually saying goodbye to the championship battle.

Swiss forward Haris Seferovic became the hero of the match, scoring a hat-trick and helping Novara win 3:1 away. Bruno contributed one assist, bringing his season assist total to 27.

After this round, the top four in Serie B were as follows: Sassuolo: 23 wins, 8 draws, 6 losses, 77 points, ranked first; Novara: 24 wins, 7 draws, 6 losses, 75 points, closely following; Livorno: 20 wins, 10 draws, 7 losses, 70 points, ranked third; Verona: 19 wins, 12 draws, 6 losses, 69 points, ranked fourth.

With only 5 rounds left in the league, Livorno and Verona were essentially out of the title race.

(End of Chapter)

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