On the evening of Wednesday 12 November, FC Lugano played a friendly match against FC Locarno at the Stadio del Lido, taking advantage of the international break. Around 500 spectators enthusiastically watched a long-awaited all-Ticino match, creating a spectacular sight and a special atmosphere. The match, which provided plenty of inspiration for the Bianconeri, ended with a 4-1 victory for Lugano.
Mattia Croci-Torti's team, fresh from their success in Basel, used the test to maintain their match rhythm and give playing time to players who had seen less action or were returning from injury. Among the new developments of the day were the return to the pitch of Kelvin, who had been out since mid-August with a biceps injury, and the debut of Ahmed Kendouci, an Algerian midfielder who finally returned to the pitch after a long recovery from a tibia fracture.
At the start, young goalkeeper Diego Mina (born in 2005) was selected as the starting keeper, while Ilija Maslarov, born in 2007, found a place in defence, playing as a left-back. It was his cross that led to Behrens' goal, who was able to score with a header after half an hour. Locarno, supported by their home crowd, equalised before half-time through Faye, taking advantage of a defensive lapse following a corner.
In the second half, Lugano changed their approach and pace. Newcomer Cimignani immediately made his mark, delivering a precise cross from the right that Brault-Guillard converted into the 2-1 goal with a header.
As the minutes ticked by, Croci-Torti brought on several U21 players: Ndiaye, Radic, Parente, Raffa and Rafael Frizzi, all of whom made a convincing entrance. Raffa scored the Bianconeri's third goal, slotting home a short rebound from the goalkeeper after an attempt by Cimignani. In the final minutes, Frizzi also had a moment of personal satisfaction, heading home to make it 4-1 from a corner — again taken by Cimignani — and then almost scoring a second when he hit the post in the closing minutes.
Philstrom, Doumbia and El Wafi played the full 90 minutes in a useful evening for maintaining rhythm, experimenting with new tactical solutions and physically testing players returning from injury. There were many positive signs for Mattia Croci-Torti, who can now take advantage of the weekend break before focusing on the challenge against leaders Thun, scheduled for Saturday 22 November.