For only the second time in 38 years, San Marino tasted the victory in a competitive game, their 3-1 win over Liechtenstein earning an unprecedented Nations League promotion.
Where before only two names – Andy Selva and Nicko Sensoli – stood, three more have joined the annals of San Marino history. Lorenzo Lazzari. Nicola Nanni. Alessandro Golinucci.
What do they have in common? Rewriting the history books for one. All five national heroes have the distinct honour – distinct in their scarcity – of scoring in San Marino victories.
The key difference, that this time it came on the road, San Marino securing a first ever away win in their entire history to earn promotion into the third tier of the UEFA Nations League.
Three goals on the night, too, ensured multiple records were broken as the Titani found the back of the net on three occasions for the first time in any game, competitive or otherwise.
Prior to Monday night, and the history created therein, FIFA’s 210th-ranked team had won only two games, of which only one was competitive. Both came against Liechtenstein.
San Marino secured promotion in the Nations League after a stunning comeback win over Liechtenstein
Nicola Nanni (pictured on Friday) scored for the second game in a row to take his tally to three
On a night when only victory would do for the scarcely imaginable to become reality, those three Titani- Lazzari, Nanni and Golinucci – brought just that to a nation to whom victory tastes sweeter than any.
Gibraltar, comparative giants in the group of three, held the keys to the kingdom heading into this final matchday, and after a 1-1 draw back in Serravalle on Friday, they could only watch on as Roberto Cevoli’s Sammarinese heroes proved the world wrong once again.
San Marino’s hopes of usurping Gibraltar at the top of Group D 1 took an early hit after Aron Sele’s stunner towards the end of the first half.
Shrugging off the challenge of Giacomo Valentino in the 40th minute, the midfielder let fly with a right-footed thunderbolt that soared past Edoardo Colombo and into the roof of the net from 25 yards. Sometimes fate crushes dreams, but rarely in such stunning fashion.
San Marino were the better side on the night; Cevoli’s side and their comparatively vibrant approach saw plenty of the ball in attacking areas, even if they were shaded in terms of overall possession.
It is a cliche that conceding just before the break can be one of the cruelest blows a side can suffer. Striking back within a minute of the restart is about as well as any team could hope to respond.
Lazzari beat the offside trap with the echoes of Jeremie Pignard’s whistle still reverberating through the hosts. Andrea Contadini’s ball over the top was latched onto and the San Marino midfielder did the rest. Level again.
Within 20 minutes of pressure, Nanni made history for the second time in four days. Just as he had scored San Marino’s first ever goal against Gibraltar on Friday evening from the spot, Nanni stepped up to bury a second for his side, their first ever competitive game with more than one goal. Surely tonight was the night.
San Marino had to wait over 20 years to add to their tally of wins on the national stage. Two decades after Selva’s wondrous free-kick, Sensoli sent a nation into raptures with win No 2. A mere two months before a third triumph seemed a fair offer, all told.
Roberto Cevoli’s side earned themselves a second win in six games to seal promotion
San Marino were on the verge now, and you could feel the confidence flowing, but even then, there won’t have been a visiting fan within 100 miles of the Rheinpark Stadion counting their chickens.
At least not until Golinucci, the captain on that night of nights back in September, who wept with his brother on the bench at the final whistle back in San Marino, stepped up to make sure of the result.
Alessandro Tosi broke into the penalty area as San Marino looked to press the boot down further, and cut the ball back to the edge of the six-yard box, and the defensive midfielder raced onto it, finishing cutely into the bottom corner for San Marino’s record-breaking third.
You can imagine the scenes. On rushed the substitutes to join Golinucci and let out all those years of pain and frustration, while Cevoli and his staff embraced on the touchline. It was a night of high emotion.
This, of course, was no stroke of luck, but the culmination of planning and squad building, Cevoli’s side placing a heavy emphasis on developing the next generation of Sammarinese stars to be able to compete on the European stage.
And how’s it has paid dividends. This was a second win in six, with only three losses in that spell in a previously unmatched run of form for FIFA’s lowest-ranked nation.
Just look at what it meant at full time to this underdog of underdogs. Arm in arm, they raced towards their travelling fans in the stands – who hail from a myriad of different nations around the world – before leaping as one into the air, buoyed by the ecstasy that creating history brings.
San Marino deserved their victory on the night, in what was a truly entertaining clash.
Five shots on target for the visitors to the hosts’ three, plus another 15 off target between the two sides makes for much more than the stagnant, thrill-bereft encounter many might have erroneously expected.
On Friday night, Nanni secured a vital point for the Titani in a 1-1 draw against Gibraltar
For the heavyweights of the game you can understand why the Nations League might carry less weight. But for teams like San Marino, for whom the chance to test themselves against their nearest rivals and peers comes so rarely, it represents opportunity.
This competition has often played the role of the much-maligned third competition in Europe; without the glitz or glamour of the European Championship and lacking the global attention of the World Cup.
But on a cold night in Liechtenstein, of all places, we saw just how important it truly is, allowing even the must spotlight-deprived nations their time in the sun.