Marco Giampaolo’s debut as Cremonese coach couldn’t have been better. The coach revolutionised the team’s tactical setup, deploying a 4-2-4 formation that was relentless in possession, completely disrupting Carlos Cuesta’s Parma. The team’s fluid passing dominated the first half, with Vandeputte and Federico Bonazzoli coming close to taking the lead on several occasions, the latter having a goal disallowed for offside.
When asked whether he preferred Sanabria over other strikers, Giampaolo said: “His characteristics. He has those of a striker, and he needed a certain level of work. In this match, I thought he was better suited to the tasks and roles assigned to him, and I think he responded well: he worked hard, and I saw him participate. The choice arose from the nature of the match and the characteristics of Sanabria, Djuric, and Vardy, which are different.”