Inside Cittadella: Dal Canto’s Tactics, Transfer Window and Best Performers
Published on: October 24, 2024
Cittadella are one of Italian football’s newest sides, having been formed as late as 1975 after a merger between U.S. Cittadellense and A.S. Olympia.
The club didn’t reach the second tier until the end of the 20th century, when they lasted only a couple of seasons in Serie B before returning to whence they came.
Cittadella then won promotion back to the second tier in 2016 and have since stayed in promotion playoff picture, falling at the final hurdle in 2021.
Of the twenty clubs currently contesting Serie B, Citta boasts the longest tenure (eight consecutive seasons), quite impressive for a club consistently punching well above its weight division. The club’s all-time record transfer is Alfredo Donnarumma who joined for a fee of €600,000 in 2013.
There has been a significant drop off in performances over the past couple of years, with the Venetian side slowly sliding into the bottom half of the table. Last season wasn’t one that will live long in the memory either: the Granata narrowly avoided the drop, finishing 14th and a mere three points above relegated Ternana.
The frustrations have been compounded in 2024-25. After the poor run of results, Edoardo Gorini was sacked after just eight games, the final nail in his coffin coming with the 6-1 trashing by Sassuolo, the biggest defeat in the club’s history. Gorini is the first Granata coach to be sacked midseason in 30 years.
Cittadella’s home form is nothing short of shocking, winless in 12 matches (6 draws, 6 losses). And if Sampdoria can avoid defeat at the Stadio Piercesare Tombolato at the end of October, ten months will have passed since the home fans have tasted victory.
Alessandro Dal Canto has taken over, and the former Carrarese man earned a point in his first game, holding Cosenza to a 0-0 draw at the Tombolato. The 49-year-old has a golden opportunity to make Cittadella into a side that can create problems for their opponents. Promotion to Serie A would exalt him to hero status
Despite the disappointing results on the pitch, there is good news in the clubhouse. Cittadella owner Mauro Michelini recently revealed that the club will undergo work on the Tombolato next summer, restructuring the Curva Sud to bring it closer to the pitch.
The club will continue to play at the stadium throughout the work, much like Udinese and Atalanta when they renovated their respective arenas.
On the pitch, whether Dal Canto can guide Cittadella to safety remains to be seen, but time is on his side.
Transfers: Cittadella didn’t spend a cent in the summer mercato, opting instead for free transfers. In came Edoardo Masciangelo, Simone Tronchin, Francesco D’Alessio and Simone Rabbi from Benevento, Vicenza, Roma’s youth academy and SPAL respectively.
Meanwhile, Stefano Piccinini and Federico Casolari were signed from Sassuolo.
Best performers: Midfielder Alessio Vita has been a dependable operator for Cittadella in the opening weeks of the season, with the midfielder providing an assist for Simone Rabbi in the 2-1 defeat by Salernitana on the opening weekend.
With two goals, Vita is also Citta’s top scorer at the time of writing. The defensive duo, Matteo Angeli and Lorenzo Carissoni, have played every minute of the season so far (810).
Albanian goalkeeper Elhan Kastrati – Cittadella’s only non-Italian player – has also been a steady performer despite keeping only two clean sheets. Kastrati has been an ever-present this season, and it’s arguable that if it wasn’t for the 27-year-old, Cittadella could be in a worse position than they currently are.
Tactics: Dal Canto, like Gorini before him, has utilised a commendable attacking emphasis for Cittadella this season.
Gorini implemented a 4-3-1-2 formation, with a classic trequartista in the shape of Vita. Gorino pivoted a 4-3-3 for the home game against league leaders Pisa. This ended in a crushing 3-0 defeat, and the system was shelved for a return to the more sturdy 4-3-1-2.
Whether Dal Canto changes tactics in the coming weeks is up for debate, with much depending on how results go over the course of the next several games.
