Sampdoria enjoy derby revenge as Criscito’s cruel miss leaves Genoa in trouble

Domenico Criscito could have been 4,000 miles away. Everything was agreed for the defender to join Toronto FC at the start of March, swapping a relegation battle at Genoa for an adventure in Canada. It sounded like the perfect way to wind down a career: playing alongside Lorenzo Insigne, an old friend with whom he has shared family holidays.

As the moment of departure neared, however, the thought of abandoning Genoa in such a perilous state gnawed away at him. The Grifone were the first professional club to take a chance on Criscito, signing him from Sporting Volla in Naples and giving him his debut in Serie B at 16 years old.

Although his career would wend through Turin and St Petersburg, he always came home to Genoa. Across 20 years, and four separate stints, Criscito has represented them more than 270 times. He has worn the captain’s armband ever since he last returned in 2018.

When the time came to say goodbye, he couldn’t. Genoa were 19th in the table, eight points from safety. Criscito was out with a muscle injury – one of a series that have disrupted his season – but believed there was still time to recover and help. Results were improving under the new manager, Alexander Blessin, who led the team on an eight-game unbeaten run, albeit with seven draws.

Losses to Verona, Milan and Lazio set Genoa back but victory over relegation rivals Cagliari brought fresh hope. A further win over neighbours Sampdoria – at risk themselves, sitting 16th in the table – on Saturday would have been enough to lift Criscito and his teammates out of the drop zone.

The Derby della Lanterna is always one of the most intense fixtures in Italian football, but the raised stakes brought back memories of one of its most memorable editions. The