Venezia came from behind to beat Modena 3-2 in the Coppa Italia at home on Saturday evening, with the decisive goals arriving in the closing stages — a two-goal burst that turned a deficit into a victory Giovanni Stroppa's side had done little to deserve for most of the contest.
Modena arrived in Venice having won just once in their last five matches, yet Andrea Sottil's side were the more composed team in the opening period. Giuseppe Ambrosino Di Bruttopilo, the Modena forward, gave the visitors the lead in the 17th minute, and Venezia's Akor Adams levelled nine minutes later. The equalizer was brief comfort. Ambrosino Di Bruttopilo struck again in the 39th minute, this time assisted by Giuseppe Caso, and Modena went into the interval with a lead they had earned.
The second half belonged to Stroppa's substitutions and, ultimately, to Adams. Venezia's coach made a double change at the 58th minute — Thierry Rendall Correia on for Ridgeciano Haps, Simone Panada on for Simon Sohm — and the shape of the match shifted. A further pair of changes at the 74th minute brought Richie Sagrado Sebastiao and Albion Rrahmani into the contest. Modena, for their part, had already withdrawn Ambrosino Di Bruttopilo at the same moment, replacing him with Stênio Zanetti, and Caso came off for Pedro Mendes. The visitors were protecting rather than pressing.
The decisive passage arrived in a three-minute window that compressed the entire match into its final meaning. In the 83rd minute, Venezia's John Yeboah Zamora converted with Adams providing the assist — the equalizer, and the first time the home side had drawn level since the 26th minute. Two minutes later, Adams turned provider into scorer, finishing to make it 3-2. That goal, the 85th-minute strike, was the winner, and it was Adams's second of the evening.
Akor Adams is the player this match will be remembered through. The Venezia forward scored twice and assisted once, accounting for all three of his side's goals either directly or as the final pass. His opener in the 26th minute kept Venezia in the match; his assist for Yeboah Zamora in the 83rd minute began the comeback; his finish two minutes later completed it. The sequence from 83' to 85' was not a tactical masterpiece — it was a forward imposing himself on a match his team had otherwise struggled to control.
Modena's defeat is partly a story of what they did not control and partly of what they chose. Ambrosino Di Bruttopilo's brace was the best individual contribution on the pitch for either side through 74 minutes, yet Sottil withdrew him at that point with the score still 2-1 in Modena's favour. The data does not explain the substitution, and it would be wrong to invent a reason. What can be said is that the player who had scored both visiting goals was no longer on the pitch when Venezia scored three times in the closing stages. Modena also picked up two yellow cards — Giacomo Olzer in the 72nd minute, Daniel Tonoli in the 79th — in the period immediately before the collapse, which may have constrained their defensive options. Their last three results now read three defeats, with six goals conceded and three scored across that run.
For Venezia, the form picture is more encouraging. Stroppa's side have won four of their last five matches, conceding only four goals across that span. This Coppa Italia opener extends a run that includes four Serie B fixtures, and the manner of the victory — a comeback sealed in the final ten minutes — adds a different kind of evidence to the record. Teams that find goals late tend to be pressing late; teams that concede them tend not to be.
A month from now, this match will be remembered as the evening Akor Adams scored twice and assisted once to rescue a Venezia side that had no business winning at half-time.