Bari welcome Pisa to the Stadio San Nicola for game with so much riding on it for both sides.

The hosts are in serious danger of slipping out of the play-off places and need a victory having won just once in the last eight.

For Pisa, a point is needed to secure a return to Serie A for the first time in 34 years following their 1-0 win against Frosinone on Thursday.

Moreno Longo’s Bari will be looking to make up for the catastrophic loss to already-relegated Cosenza during the week and are on the back of three defeats in the last five.

“The defeat was deserved,” Longo said following the Cosenza game. “It’s right to think that heart was missing [from the performance].

“We’ve played well in games and not in others, and this makes me even angrier, because the lads have shown they can come in with the right attitude.”

With Modena, Cesena and Bari all on 44 points and Sudtirol and Carrarese just three behind, the pressure is growing on Longo and Bari with three games of the season remaining. There is a very real possibility of the Biancorossi dropping out of the play-off places having been there for the majority of the campaign.

Pisa, meanwhile have no such issues, with promotion almost secure.

A goal from Henrik Meister nine minutes from the end took Pippo Inzaghi’s side one step closer to the promised land of Serie A.

Pisa’s rise has been arguably the story of the season in Serie B. Few fancied them for a promotion tilt, and Inzaghi only joined as coach last summer.

How the Nerazzurri fare back in the top flight will be one of the most intriguing facets of Serie A next season.

Their last stay in the division lasted a single campaign back in 1990-91 when they finished 16th and suffered an immediate return to Serie B.

For Inzaghi, Pisa’s imminent promotion represents his second as coach, having guided Benevento to Serie A in 2019-20.

Yet this one is arguably the grander achievement, considering few had Pisa down as genuine candidates before a ball was kicked.

Moreover, Inzaghi’s record in Serie A is not ideal. He took charge of AC Milan for a season in 2014 before being sacked and his reign at Bologna in 2018-19 was even shorter, axed after just seven months.

He may have taken Benevento up, but he also took them back down the following season, and Inzaghi will be keen to prove he can survive in the tactical surroundings of the top flight and that his brother Simone is not the only Inzaghi who can coach.

But the most pressure is on Bari, and Longo will be hoping for a raucous crowd at the San Nicola to galvanise his confidence-shot men.

After the meeting with Pisa, they finish the campaign with games against Cittadella and Sudtirol. On paper, these are more than winnable despite the club’s apparent recent dislike for claiming three points.

It could be enough to secure a play-off place and with it hope of a returning to the top flight for the first time since 2011. But Bari’s form does not inspire hope. 

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