Marco Giampaolo walked into the Zini on Sunday knowing everything hinged on one fixture: Cremonese and Como were scheduled to play at 20.45 on 24 May, with both teams naming their starting lineups and Cesc Fàbregas in charge of Como.
The match carried a heavy crowd: 12,046 spectators were reported, including 8,208 abbonati, 3,838 tickets sold on the day and 192 away tickets for Como fans. The numbers mattered because they framed a fixture with history — Cremonese arrived unbeaten in their previous 10 meetings with Como across Serie A, Serie B and Serie C (seven victories, three draws), while Como’s last win over Cremonese dated back to 12 October 2013.
There was more recent history on the field: the first meeting between the teams this season finished 1-1 at Como, with Nico Paz and Federico Baschirotto on the scoresheet and Jesus Rodriguez sent off. Baschirotto, however, was unavailable for Cremonese for this return match, a loss of formational continuity that mattered at a crucial moment.
The teams named contrasting systems. Cremonese were listed in a 3-5-2 with Audero in goal behind Terracciano, Bianchetti, Luperto and a midfield of Barbieri, Grassi, Maleh, Thorsby and Pezzella supporting Bonazzoli and Vardy up front. Como lined up 4-2-3-1 with Butez; Smolcic, Ramon, Kempf and Moreno across the back; Perrone and Da Cunha sitting; Diao, Baturina and J. Rodriguez behind Douvikas. Fabio Maresca was the referee, assisted by Cecconi and Fontemurato with Calzavara as fourth official; Gariglio served as VAR and Camplone as AVAR.
For Cremonese the night carried immediate consequence: they entered the fixture needing a win and a Lecce failure to win in order to secure Serie A survival. If they drew and Lecce lost, the result would instead force a relegation playoff. Como went into the game already certain of a Europa League place but still chasing the higher prize of Champions League qualification, meaning their motivation to press for three points was genuine even without survival worries.
The matchday build-up contained visible strain. Baschirotto’s absence left a hole for Cremonese, while Como were without Addai, who had ended his season at the end of February, and missing Valle on the left. Nico Paz — a scorer in the earlier meeting — was in doubt but expected to recover enough to take a place on the bench. The contradictions were plain: Cremonese’s recent form included two straight league wins, yet the club had never won three Serie A matches in a row; their long unbeaten run versus Como provided psychological advantage, but missing players undercut that edge.
Giampaolo framed the moment simply: "allo Zini si vedrà se la corda regge." Local coverage captured the scale of the task — as one outlet put it, "c’è da scalare l’Everest." The blunt language underlined the mismatch between the crowd’s expectations and the precarious reality on the pitch.
Dazn held exclusive live coverage beginning at 20.30, half an hour before the scheduled kickoff, a detail that guaranteed every tactical tweak and selection controversy would be aired to subscribers in real time. With lineups set and the officiating team in place, the only variables left were the two sides on the grass and events elsewhere in the table.
By 20.45, when the match was due to kick off, Giampaolo would have an answer to the question he raised at the start of the night: whether the rope would hold. If Cremonese won and Lecce failed to win, survival would be secured; if not, the club would be left to confront the prospect of a playoff or relegation — and Giampaolo, who had spoken plainly in the build-up, would be judged on whether his side had climbed that Everest or fallen short.
