Chapter 20: Nobody Can Stop Novara!

Chapter 20: Nobody Can Stop Novara!

Who can stop Novara?

In the last 17 rounds of the league, 17 teams have failed, including strong Serie B teams like Empoli and Verona, as well as weaker teams like Grosseto, Varese, and Padova.

Seventeen teams have fallen one after another to Novara's scythe. Some defeats were by one goal, like Lanciano, Verona, Ternana, Reggina, Brescia, and Ascoli. Others were by two goals, like Padova, Bari, Varese, Grosseto, Empoli, and Spezia. And some were humiliating defeats, like the one suffered by Spezia, Chieti, and Crotone.

Seventeen teams have been defeated in different ways by Novara.

And these seventeen failures have forged a historic achievement for Novara in Italian football: 17 consecutive victories!

This is a historic record in Serie B!

It is difficult for a dominant force to emerge in a second-tier league of a country, as once a team shows good performance in Serie B, they usually quickly ascend to Serie A.

Therefore, it's hard to accumulate many points in Serie B, and it's even harder to achieve a winning streak.

Even when Juventus was relegated due to the phone tapping scandal and swept Serie B in the following season, they couldn't achieve such a feat.

Indeed, in the 2006-2007 season, despite obtaining an outstanding record of 28 wins, 10 draws, and 4 losses, their maximum streak was only 8 wins.

After achieving 17 consecutive victories, only four teams remain in Serie B that haven't lost to Novara this season, the same four teams that faced Novara during their streak of six consecutive defeats: Sassuolo, Vicenza, Livorno, and Modena.

If Novara can win four more matches, they will have defeated all the other 21 teams in Serie B!

Likewise, this means that four Serie B teams have already been defeated by Novara twice. Those unfortunate ones are Cesena, Spezia, Spezia, and Brescia.

Seventeen consecutive victories have taken Novara from hell to heaven.

At the end of the 17th round of Serie B, when Novara suffered six humiliating consecutive defeats, they still occupied the 19th place in Serie B, just above the relegation zone, and were 24 points behind the leader Sassuolo.

But after 17 consecutive victories, Novara's record has improved to 21 wins, 7 draws, and 6 losses, with 66 points. This has pushed them beyond Verona and Livorno, both with 64 points, to take the second place.

Before them is only Sassuolo, the undisputed leader of the league. Up to round 34, Sassuolo had an impressive record of 22 wins, 7 draws, and 5 losses, with 73 points. Even if Novara didn't have points deducted, they would still be 3 points behind Sassuolo.

This shows how impressive Sassuolo's performance has been this season.

After Verona and Livorno were defeated by Novara, the only team that has a good chance of beating Novara is Sassuolo.

In round 14, Sassuolo defeated Novara at home 2-0. Although the score was only 2-0, anyone who watched the match knows that the real gap between the two teams was more than just two goals.

Sassuolo completely dominated that game.

That defeat was a tough blow for Novara, even Bruno felt deeply powerless and almost questioned his life.

Then, Novara continued their decline, losing to Vicenza, Livorno, and Modena, almost falling into the relegation zone.

It can be said that if it weren't for facing Sassuolo at a critical moment, the painful experience of six consecutive defeats probably wouldn't have happened to Novara.

The coincidence is that Novara's next opponent is Sassuolo.

On April 5th in the evening, Italian local time, Novara will host Sassuolo at home.

This will be the most powerful battle in Serie B this season!

Yes, the strongest showdown of Serie B this season, the real battle of the mountain king.

Although, according to the encounter between the two teams in the first leg, the skill gap between Novara and Sassuolo is quite large.

However, after five long months, Novara is no longer the Novara of before.

After the painful experience of six consecutive defeats and the transformation into a strong team thanks to 17 consecutive victories, Novara has completed a true metamorphosis.

This can be seen in everything that happened during the 17 consecutive victories. Nowadays, Novara has learned to be humble in victory and not to give up in defeat. Even when they face unfavorable situations, they can quickly stabilize themselves and look for opportunities to counterattack.

It is precisely this mentality that has allowed them to overcome several crises and achieve the surprising 17 consecutive victories that have shocked Italian football.

In the opinion of the Italian media, the timing of this match is perfect.

As the first weekend of April approaches, the main headline of La Gazzetta dello Sport is: Novara vs Sassuolo: The battle of the mountain king in Serie B!

Yes, La Gazzetta dello Sport's focus is not on the upcoming encounter between AC Milan and Fiorentina in Serie A, but it is directly focused on a Serie B match.

It's a bit absurd!

However, in the media's view, AC Milan's excellent performance in this period has propelled the team to the third place in Serie A, but it's not enough to reignite hopes of winning the title. At best, this only solidifies AC Milan's third place.

In the eyes of the media, there seems to be more interest in the showdown between Novara, the team that miraculously achieved 17 consecutive victories in Serie B, and Sassuolo, the team dominating Serie B this season.

Will Novara win and continue their winning streak in Serie B? Or will Sassuolo defeat Novara and maintain their lead in the standings?

Indeed, this match is even more crucial for Novara, who is six points behind Sassuolo.

As described by La Gazzetta dello Sport, if Novara loses, not only will the record of 17 consecutive victories be broken, but the gap with Sassuolo in the standings will also increase to 9 points, thus losing the last hope of winning the Serie B title.

And if Sassuolo loses, Novara will be just 3 points behind Sassuolo, and the battle for the Serie B title will remain exciting.

What will happen if Novara and Sassuolo draw?

Tuttosport has the answer: that's what Verona and Livorno hope for.

In round 35 of Serie B, Verona faces Ternana and Livorno faces Ascoli. Both teams have relatively weak opponents, and both play at home, so it is very likely that they will win three points.

If that happens, Serie B will see a situation where the three main pursuers will unite to harass Sassuolo, making Serie B even more exciting.

(End of chapter)