It was an exceptionally sunny day for the crowd of 41103 that came out to
Stadio Sergio Gallizia.
Timothy-Patrick Hintz was the appointed referee with assistance provided by
Jon Pütlich and
Bengt J. Olofsson.
A 3-5-2 alignment was the formation of choice for Puzzle.
They fielded: Gkazofonias - Kormanský, Chabot, D'ostrel - De Vanna, Sori, Svensson, Zsák, Birro - Jehmlich, Scavazzini.
Gleburn tactics involved an interesting 4-4-2 combination.
The following players took the field: Ortega - Gerhardsson, Fornaini, Bittinger, Muniz - Hanlık, Merivot, Németh, Campanale - Ødegård, Bombi.
Using their counter-attacking abilities was the strategy of choice for Gleburn.
Puzzle broke through on the left 23 minutes into the game, with
L. Jehmlich firing in from an acute angle to give the home side a 1 - 0 lead.
The home side's
L. Jehmlich came close to extending the lead 36 minutes into the game. His shot came in from the right hand side but
R. Ortega managed to save it with an unbelievable reaction stop.
A foul called during a Gleburn counterattack resulted in a great chance to score, but
A. Bombi's shot rattled off the post.
R. Scavazzini increased the lead for Puzzle to 2 - 0, getting a head onto a hooked ball from the right. The ball looked to have taken a deflection on the way in, but he's claiming it!
Confident in their lead, Puzzle's players relaxed and focused more on defending the lead than increasing it.
M. Sori enjoyed the sunshine and demonstrated his stunning technique over and over again.
The teams went for the halftime break at 2 - 0.
Puzzle claimed to have seen most of the ball, and the statistics agreed with them - possession being 62 percent.
M. Sori unleashed a swerving effort from the right that the visitors' keeper did well to tip wide.
In an effort to secure the lead, Puzzle changed their tactic after 70 minutes.
With the clock showing 70 minutes played, a great pass from the defensive line of Gleburn resulted in a counterattack that was smoothly brought under control by
A. Bombi in the centre of the opposition's penalty area, but his finish went high.
74 minutes in, Gleburn's
E. Gerhardsson received a yellow card for going into a challenge studs first.
One of many good crosses from
L. Birro on the wing was received and skillfully taken care of by
R. Scavazzini, who scored for Puzzle. 3 - 0
The Puzzle players could smell victory in the air.
M. Sori wasn't in a hurry to leave the field as he was substituted for
P. Schabhuettl after 80 minutes.
After a short break after 80 minutes, Puzzle seemed to change their tactical approach a bit.
Puzzle enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 55 percent of possession.
Puzzle's best player was
R. Scavazzini.
G. De Vanna turned in a dismal performance, however.
The most dominating Gleburn player was without a doubt
S. Ødegård.
S. Bittinger on the other hand, had a terrible day.
The match ends 3 - 0.