The Moccagatta Stadium in Alessandria was packed with spectators, witnessing thrilling matches and high-quality football on the opening day of the Memorial Mamma e Papà Cairo tournament. This event, dedicated to the memory of Urbano Cairo, president of Torino FC, and his parents, Maria Giulia Castelli and Giuseppe Cairo, officially kicks off the Primavera (youth) football season. The tournament culminates tonight in Alessandria: at 9 PM, the youth teams of Torino and Atalanta will compete for the coveted trophy. Earlier, at 5:30 PM, Milan and Inter will face off for third place.
Torino Chases Third Consecutive Title
Under the guidance of coach Christian Fioratti, Torino will be aiming for a `hat-trick` tonight. The Granata have triumphed in the last two editions of the tournament and will seek to confirm their dominance against Giovanni Bosi`s Atalanta. In their semifinal yesterday, Torino defeated Giovanni Renna`s Milan 6-4 in a penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw in regular time. The match was closely watched by Torino`s first-team coach Marco Baroni and technical director Davide Vagnati, who traveled from Turin to support the Under-20 squad. Milan initially took the lead through a penalty converted by Borsani. Early in the second half, Torino missed a penalty by Gabellini (saved by Longoni), and Milan nearly doubled their lead with a shot hitting the crossbar by Di Siena, before Carvalho scored the equalizer with a header.
The penalty shootout sequence was:
Gabellini (Torino, goal)
Pandolfi (Milan, saved by Siviero)
Ferraris (Torino, goal)
Cappelletti (Milan, goal)
Gatto (Torino, goal)
Scotti (Milan, goal)
Olinga (Torino, goal)
Cullotta (Milan, goal)
Zaia (Torino, goal)
Atalanta Prevails in Marathon Shootout
The afternoon semifinal was also decided by penalties, with Atalanta overcoming Inter 9-8 after a 1-1 draw in regular play. Inter`s Della Mora scored the opener around the half-hour mark, followed by an equalizer from Atalanta`s Mouisse early in the second half. The penalty shootout was a marathon, with teams going “ad oltranza” (sudden death), until Inter`s Sorino missed, hitting the crossbar, giving Atalanta the win.
The penalty shootout sequence was:
Humanes (Inter, goal)
Mungari (Atalanta, goal)
Putsen (Inter, goal)
Steffanoni (Atalanta, goal)
El Mahboubi (Inter, goal)
Ramaj (Atalanta, goal)
Kartelo (Inter, goal)
Gobbo (Atalanta, goal)
Cerpelletti (Inter, goal)
Cakolli (Atalanta, goal)
Maye (Inter, goal)
Ruiz de Valdivia (Atalanta, goal)
Strand (Inter, goal)
Leandri (Atalanta, goal)
Sorino (Inter, crossbar)
Belli (Atalanta, goal)
