Berardi at the double as Sassuolo deepen Verona’s relegation woes

Sassuolo scored twice in the five minutes before halftime to pave the way to a 3-0 victory that deepened Verona’s already considerable relegation woes in Serie A. Verona was without a win in 11 league games and in last place, equal on points with Pisa.

Both clubs were nine points from safety, and Pisa faces a crunch match on Monday against Fiorentina, the team six points above them both in the third relegation spot. Andrea Pinamonti got Sassuolo’s opener with a deflected strike, and then four minutes later Domenico Berardi added a second on Friday. Although the Verona goalkeeper stopped his penalty kick, Berardi was quickest to the follow-up and buried the rebound.

Berardi completed the scoring 17 minutes into the second half when he finished off a rapid counterattack. Completing Verona’s misery, Al Musrati was sent off for a second bookable offence five minutes from time. The result extended Sassuolo’s recent good run; it has taken 12 points from its last 15.