Jamie Vardy’s eventful night for Cremonese in dramatic Serie A relegation battle - From ‘difference maker’ to ‘heartbreaker’

Cremonese striker Jamie Vardy had an eventful night as the battle for Serie A survival took another series of twists and turns on the penultimate weekend.

With Verona and Pisa already relegated, it is a straight fight between Cremonese and Lecce for who will retain their spot in Italy’s top flight.

And it looked like Cremonese would have their destiny in their own hands as they put the finishing touches on a 1-0 win away to Udinese, only for their celebrations to be curtailed by a 96th-minute Lecce winner at Sassuolo.

Vardy was at the heart of the drama in Udine.

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First, the former Leicester City stalwart showed he still has a ruthless edge in front of goal, coolly slotting home the decisive goal after Federico Bonazzoli’s initial strike was pushed into his path.

Many strikers would panic in a similar situation, and opt for power with the goal at their mercy and at such a heightened time in the season, but the 39-year-old read the situation to perfection, and wrong-footed the Udinese goalkeeper and defender in front of him.

"Two goals in as many games, he is delivering when it really matters," TNT Sports commentator Adam Summerton said.

'Delivering when it matters!' - Vardy scores vital goal for Cremonese

Video credit: TNT Sports

Alongside Summerton, Don Hutchison added: "The man you want, Jamie Vardy, right in front of goal. He never looked like he was going to miss it. He’s been there a million times over.

"He was very calm. It would have been very easy to go for power, but he recognised where the space was in the bottom corner.

"A very cultured finish. It could be a massive goal for Cremonese."

A 'good use' of VAR

Vardy was then involved in a red card incident in the second half that briefly saw Udinese reduced to 10 players. Chasing a loose ball, the Englishman got there a fraction before Udinese left-back Hassane Kamara, and was left clutching his ankle after the challenge.

Both players had their boots raised, and referee Gianluca Manganiello wasted little time in brandishing the red card, much to the surprise of the TNT Sports commentators.

"It’s a genuine 50-50 between the two players. Jamie Vardy obviously drew the foul, but the red seems really harsh," Summerton began.

Hutchison continued: "That can’t be a red card. Never in a million years can that be a red card. Not a chance.

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"He’s a mile away from goal so he’s not denying a goalscoring opportunity.

"It has to be overturned. It would be the craziest decision of all time if this red card stands."

Replays appeared to show there wasn’t much in it, and, to his credit, Manganiello did reverse his decision after a VAR intervention.

"He was very rash, but I don’t mind him admitting his mistake. It’s good refereeing. I like that," Hutchison said.

"There have been a lot of poor uses of VAR recently, but that was certainly a good use of it."

With Cremonese winning, and Sassuolo scoring in the 82nd minute to level with Lecce at 2-2, it was set to be a near-perfect night for Vardy and his team-mates.

Had Sassuolo hung on for a draw, it would have meant a win for Cremonese at home to Como on the final day of the season would have guaranteed their safety, but Lecce’s last-gasp winner took it out of their hands.

Lecce welcome Genoa next Sunday, knowing a win will see them avoid the drop.

Jamie Vardy celebrates his goal with his Cremonese team-mates

Image credit: Getty Images

"There goes the final whistle, but it’s really mixed emotions here for Cremonese, because word is getting through that Lecce have scored a very late winner at Sassuolo," said Summerton.

"So you can see a very muted reaction from the Cremonese players. It looked, a minute or so ago, like the great escape was very much on [with] Vardy the difference-maker.

"But it’s Lecce who will go into the final day with their fate in their own hands.

"Cremonese did all they could tonight. They remain in the race for survival going into the final weekend, but just as it looked they would start that final day outside of the bottom three, they drop back in.”

"Vardy the difference-maker in Udine. They retain hope, but what a heartbreaker for Cremonese."

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