Joel Obi: How Salernitana midfield man changed the game against Genoa

Joel Obi: How Salernitana midfield man changed the game against Genoa


After seven Serie A games, Salernitana finally got their first Italian top-flight win 23 years after their last when they defeated Genoa 1-0 at Stadio Arechi on Saturday.

The Granata already seemed doomed despite being just six games into their return, scoring only four times and conceding 15, lowest in both metrics heading into the seventh round of games.

Fabrizio Castori’s team picked up maximum points on Saturday, and Joel Obi’s role in the success shouldn’t be diminished.

The midfielder replaced the injured Mamadou Coulibaly at half-time and thrived after the interval. Obi won every ground duel and aerial tussle — four in total — and seldom gave possession away in the second 45 minutes.

Obi’s shift out of possession was marked, owing to how many minutes he spent comparatively to other teammates. The Nigerian’s 12 pressures was outdone by only two players, Grigoris Kastanos and Franck Ribery (both 19), but there’s a feeling to believe the West African was going to rank highest had he also featured for 90 minutes like the pair.

Only two teammates outdid the midfielder’s tackles plus interceptions haul of three, while he made five recoveries in just 45 minutes of action.

It was arguably Obi’s best showing of the season as Salernitana halted the scoring runs of Mattia Destro — who’d scored four times in six Serie A appearances before Saturday — and Domenico Criscito — scorer in three successive league games before the weekend — to keep their first clean sheet of the campaign.

Castori’s men face fellow strugglers Spezia after the interlude, and they just might nick successive wins against Thiago Motta’s side who are on a run of three defeats in which they’ve conceded nine goals.

If Obi stays fit over the next fortnight, there’s no reason to think he’ll not be trusted to play from the start having thrived off the bench against Genoa.

Seye Omidiora is a passionate football writer and pundit whose deep appreciation for the beautiful game exceeds the usual. He is currently a columnist for Goal Africa and has previously written for Vital Football UK, IBCity Info and Opera News.

Pulse Contributors is an initiative to highlight diverse journalistic voices. Pulse Contributors do not represent the company Pulse and contribute on their own behalf.

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