Frosinone beat Lecce 5-1 with a Birligea brace to climb to sixth

Frosinone beat Lecce 5-1 at the Benito Stirpe in one of the two late fixtures of the ninth round of Serie A. The home side climbed to sixth place, one point behind Milan, while Lecce remain on nine points. The visitors were already missing several players, and they also lost Geubbels to a muscle problem sustained during the warm-up.

Two first-half goals, one from the spot

Frosinone took the lead in the 25th minute. Ghedjemis got past Gallo on the right and sent a low cross to the edge of the penalty area, where Matteo Cichella struck first time into the bottom corner beyond Lecce goalkeeper Falcone. Lecce had an earlier chance when a shot from Monteiro forced the Frosinone goalkeeper to push it over for a corner in the 20th minute. Falcone then kept out a Kvernadze effort in the 32nd minute.

Kvernadze went down after light contact with Siebert at 44', and referee Abisso pointed to the spot. Lecce protested an earlier foul in the opposite box, but the VAR did not intervene. Giacomo Calò sent Falcone the wrong way, doubling the lead shortly before the interval.

Raimondo and Birligea extend the lead

Early in the second half Ghedjemis tested Falcone with a left-footed shot from distance, and Oyono later headed another chance that the Lecce goalkeeper also saved. The third goal came in the 59th minute, when Kvernadze turned the ball back to Antonio Raimondo, whose left-footed finish made it 3-0. ANSA lists it as his ninth league goal of the season.

Daniel Birligea made it 4-0 in the 27th minute of the second half. Schmid, who had received a pass from Calò, fed him inside the area, and Birligea finished with his right foot. The goal was first disallowed and then validated after a VAR review.

Joel Monteiro reduced the deficit in the 82nd minute with a right-footed curling strike, his first league goal. Birligea then added the fifth in injury time at 94', again set up by Kvernadze, finishing low with his left foot.

Coaches, lineups and the table

Frosinone are sixth, one point behind Milan, after the result. Alvini's side were managed against a Lecce team coached by Di Francesco, and the visitors remain on nine points. Danilo Veiga and Tiago Gabriel started in the Lecce lineup, and SAPO described the visitors as having suffered a heavy defeat away from home. Birligea's injury-time strike completed his brace and set the final score at 5-1.