
FC Lugano wins 2:1 against Winterthur in the 28th round of the Super League. For the Ticino side, the trembling victory is tantamount to a liberating blow.
Three defeats in the championship and the elimination in the Cup against third-tier Biel. Plus the knockout in the Conference League against Celje during the week. These are truly not easy weeks for Mattia Croci-Torti and his FC Lugano. A home win - even if it's only against the team at the bottom of the table - is a balm to the maltreated Ticino football soul.
In a long uneventful match, Georgios Koutsias redeemed the dominant home team with his double strike shortly after the break (51st/56th). The 21-year-old Greek had only moved to Ticino on loan from partner club Chicago in the winter and had already scored twice on Thursday.
With the lead behind them, the Ticino side became passive. Something that was almost punished. First Loïc Lüthi scored with a header five minutes before the end. Matteo Di Giusto then almost equalized in stoppage time. Amir Saipi deflected the Winterthur player's shot around the post with his fingertips.
The win puts Lugano back in the championship race and only three points behind leaders Servette. For Winterthur, the situation at the bottom of the table is slowly but surely becoming hopeless, as they are already seven points behind Grasshoppers.
Telegram:
Lugano - Winterthur 2:1 (0:0)
3344 spectators. - SR Horisberger. - Goals: 50. Koutsias (Macek) 1:0. 56. Koutsias (Bislimi) 2:0. 85. Lüthi (Zuffi) 2:1.
Lugano: Saipi; Zanotti (81. Brault-Guillard), Papadopoulos, Hajdari, Martim Marques (65. Valenzuela); Grgic, Mahmoud (46. Macek), Bislimi (64. Doumbia); Steffen, Koutsias, Daniel Dos Santos (84. Sbai).
Winterthur: Kapino; Sidler, Arnold, Lüthi, Diaby; Stillhart (63. Jankewitz), Zuffi, Schneider (46. Durrer); Burkart (62. Bajrami), Gomis (46. Di Giusto), Frei (63. Buess).
Remarks: Cautions: 66 Jankewitz, 72 Sidler.