Parma make light work of Catania in Coppa Italia thanks to Lontani brace

Parma made light work of their Coppa Italia clash with Catania, winning 2-0 at the Ennio Tardini thanks to a Simone Lontani brace that had the tie all but wrapped up before halftime. The home forward scored both goals in the space of just sixteen minutes, as Parma made the most of their chances despite having far less of the ball than their visitors.

Lontani decides it in the first half

The deadlock was broken in the 18th minute, when Lontani turned in a right-footed effort from close range following a corner kick, curling the ball into the top right corner to make it 1-0. The goal came after Parma had already served notice with attempts from El Bilal Touré and Adrián Bernabé, both of whom had tested the Catania goal without luck in the buildup.

The second goal arrived in the 34th minute and confirmed the home side's momentum: after a quick counterattack, El Bilal Touré whipped in a precise cross that Lontani, again with his right foot and from close range, guided into the top left corner to make it 2-0. That was how the first half ended, and although Catania created a few chances through Emmanuele Cicerelli and Simone Leonardi, they never seriously troubled the Parma goal.

In the second half, Catania racked up possession and corners but lacked precision in the final third. Parma, for their part, managed the lead with substitutions Mandela Keita, Oliver Sørensen and Matija Frigan, and came close to extending the score when Frigan fired over following a pass from Ousmane Diallo. In stoppage time, the only notable moment away from the scoreline was a yellow card for Franco Carboni.

Plenty of possession, but no end product

The numbers tell a story of contrasts: Catania controlled 65.6% of possession and completed 636 passes to Parma's 340, yet it was the home side that looked far more dangerous going forward.

Parma's eight shots on target, compared to just two for Catania, help explain why the final score was so lopsided despite the visitors' territorial edge. Based on our own estimate calculated from shot locations, the match's xG heavily favored the home side: 2.148 to Catania's 0.63, a gap that confirms Parma didn't just win on the scoreboard, but also in the quality of the chances they created.

What the preview said versus what happened on the field

Before kickoff, our model gave Parma a 41% chance of winning, with a 29% chance of a draw and 30% for Catania, projecting a total of 2.62 expected goals (1.43 for the home side and 1.18 for the visitors). The final result lined up with the favoritism given to Parma, though the two-goal margin and the sheer efficiency with which the game was settled in just sixteen first-half minutes went beyond what those numbers suggested.

Parma leave the Ennio Tardini having shown clinical efficiency against a Catania side that dominated the ball without finding the spaces needed to unsettle their opponent. Lontani's double display, scoring with both feet in the box, ended up being the difference in a Coppa Italia tie that the home side put away in the first half and never let slip.