Avellino may have hit the ground running in their first Serie B campaign in seven years, but Raffaele Biancolino insists there is still room for improvement as they prepare to host struggling Mantova.

Fourth in the table with 11 points after six games, the Irpini have been one of the surprise packages of the season. Billed as relegation candidates, Avellino are just three points off leaders Frosinone and already eight points ahead of the drop zone.

And Biancolino, who steered Avellino back to calcio‘s second tier last season, believes there is more to come.

“Over these first six matches, the team has really come to understand the league, gaining both confidence and self-belief,” he said.

“We’ve even had eight different players score already. The team knows what it can achieve and is approaching this difficult division in the right way.

“However, I always want something more because we can still improve. The resilience shown in matches like the one against Carrara proves the point: this squad has great character.”

That character was laid bare again on Tuesday, when Avellino came back from two goals down to draw 2-2 against fellow Serie B newcomers Padova courtesy of goals from Tommaso Biasci and Facundo Lescano.

There was no such solace for Mantova, who slumped to a fourth consecutive defeat as they lost 2-1 at Juve Stabia. It left them marooned in 19th place with just three points to their name and only a point clear of bottom-of-the-table Sampdoria.

Mantova have opted to circle wagons in the face of adversity, with the club standing firmly behind manager Davide Possanzini, whose future hangs by a thread following the dreaded vote of confidence by the board.

“Following President Filippo Piccoli’s post-match remarks, Mantova 1911 confirms full confidence in manager Davide Possanzini and the technical staff,” the club said in a statement on Wednesday.

“We wish to stress that, fully aware of the difficulties we are currently facing, our primary objective is to regroup and unite, using the same core principles that have defined the club’s philosophy and operations since the beginning of the Piccoli presidency.”

Lose to Avellino on Saturday, however, and Mantova may be issuing a very different kind of statement.

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