Genoa fans' funeral for Il Doria was premature: Sampdoria rise from the dead!
Reading Time: 2min | Mon. 16.06.25. | 16:53
Instead of being relegated to the Italian third tier for the first time in their history, La Samp awaited a miracle and are suddenly close to surviving, while their play-off rivals Salernitana cope with food poisoning outbreak
The evidence that miracles are possible even when they are least likely to happen comes from Italy. The 1991 Serie A winners and 1992 European Cup finalists, Sampdoria, were practically relegated to the third tier of Italian football, Serie C, for the first time in the club's proud history.
They ended up 18th in Serie B - one spot and one point away from the play-off zone - and their fate seemed to have been sealed. Still, as the well-known saying asserts, Fortune favours the brave, or in this case, those who deserve better.
Serie C is by no means a place for such a renowned club, and the ultimate justice occurred when no one expected it, as Il Doria are now on the verge of survival in Serie B!
Another proverb says, One man's loss is another man's gain. In this case, Brescia - which had been safe following the final league round - were punished and docked four points, getting immediately relegated, while Sampdoria got an "eleventh-hour chance" to book a Serie B ticket in the relegation play-off.
🇮🇹 Sampdoria were relegated at the end of the Serie B season. However, they received a lifeline after Brescia were docked points and relegated instead.
— The European Football Express (@TheEuroFE) June 16, 2025
Last night, they beat Salernitana 2-0 in the first leg of the Serie B relegation playoff. They look set to stay up now! pic.twitter.com/HKh0IgBlw7
Last night, the Genoa crew triumphed in the first leg of the play-off final against Salernitana 2-0 behind Melle Meulensteen and Marco Curto's goals, securing a fantastic advantage ahead of the return leg.
The only problem is that it's still vague when it's going to be played.
Namely, the clash in Salerno was scheduled for next Friday, but the visitors requested a postponement as 21 of their squad and staff members were hospitalized due to a food poisoning outbreak following the match in Genoa!
🚨🇮🇹 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 | Salernitana have requested a postponement for their Serie B relegation play-off match vs Sampdoria, reports @SkySport. ⛔️
— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) June 16, 2025
The reason: 21 members of the team affected by food poisoning. 🤢🤮 pic.twitter.com/T6lpgNUh8C
Nevertheless, whenever the return leg gets played, Sampdoria will await it with boosted confidence and a promising advantage.
In the end, this turn of events probably enraged Sampdoria's fierce city rivals, Genoa fans, as they rejoiced at Il Doria's downfall so much that they even organized a funeral?! However, it seems that Sampdoria will have the last laugh.
