Varese 0-0 Torino

Torino could only manage a goalless draw against Varese in difficult conditions at the Stadio Franco Ossola, a result that moved Toro down to third place in the table.

Francesco Benussi made his first appearance for the away side, whilst fellow January signing Riccardo Meggiorini made his first start, as once again Rolando Bianchi started on the bench.

Torino made a bright start and should of had a penalty in the opening stages when Meggiorini was upended by home goalkeeper Walter Bressan in the area. However, referee Angelo Cervellera  waved away the appeals and Toro's long wait for a penalty kick continues.

In form striker Mirco Antenucci came close to scoring for the third successive game, but after jinking past two defenders, his shot went narrowly wide of the post. Toro's best chance of the first half occurred when Juan Surraco found himself in space on the right wing and dribbled into the area before cutting the ball back to Meggiorini who blazed over the bar. In fairness to the new signing, the ball did seem to bobble on the poor pitch before it reached the striker, but he still should have hit the target.

The home side had to wait until the second half for their first real chance of the match, as substitute Gianpietro Zecchin's dipping volley only just went over the bar from 30 yards.  Toro coach Giampiero Ventura was dismissed from the touchline after complaining about a foul on Meggiorini, who was subbed for captain Rolando Bianchi with twenty minutes remaining.

Varese nearly caught Torino on the counter attack after Guiseppe Vives gave the ball away, but debutant Francesco Benussi showed good positioning to rush out of his goal and clear the danger. By the end of the game, the weather conditions had got much worse, as it became difficult to even see the ball, let alone create any chances and the game ended goalless.

After drawing their last two games away from home on difficult surfaces, Toro will be relieved to return to the Olimpico on Tuesday night against Vicenza, knowing that a victory is essential in order to keep up Sassuolo and Pescara at the top of the table.

Forza Torino

Varese V Torino Preview

Torino will look to regain their place at the top of the Serie B standings when they play Varese on Saturday afternoon. Toro will look to fare better than they did last season, as they return to the scene of one of their most embarrassing defeats of the 2010/11 campaign - a 3-0 defeat last January.

New signing Francesco Benussi should make his debut for Torino in goal, whilst Rolando Bianchi and Riccardo Meggiorini will be looking to replace Alessandro Sgrigna in attack, as he misses out with the flu. Former Varese striker Giulio Ebagua, who has been linked with a move away from the club,  is in included in the squad after missing the last two games.

Varese had a poor start to the season that ultimately cost Benito Carbone his job, but new coach Rolando Maran has succeeded in changing their fortunes around, and they currently occupy the last playoff position. Last season, much of Varese's success was built on their fantastic home form (they were unbeaten at home) but this season, they have already lost four times at the Stadio Franco Ossola.

Prediction
Varese 1-3 Torino

Torino V Varese Preview

Torino will play their third Serie B game in eight days tonight, when they face last season's surprise package Varese at the Stadio Olimpico.

Torino will be eager to get their first home victory of the campaign, after only managing a draw against Cittadella on Wednesday night. However, Varese will certainly be tough opposition, and last season did the double over Toro as they surprised everybody by finishing in 4th position.

Much of last season's success was thanks to former coach Giuseppe Sannino, but he left in the summer to join Siena, and has been replaced by former Torino striker Benito Carbone. Varese have started the season with two 0-0 draws, and will therefore be looking for their first victory of the season.

Torino winger Nnamdi Oduamadi, who scored the winning goal in the opening game at Ascoli, is out for a month with an injury, and defender Kamil Glik is still away with Poland on international duty. Striker Giulio Ebagua, who signed from Varese in the summer, will be looking to score his first goal in a Torino shirt against his former team.

Torino sign Osarimen 'Giulio' Ebagua

In what will undoubtedly be a busy summer for new players, Torino have made Varese striker Osarimen 'Giulio' Ebagua their first summer signing.

After their failure to reach the Serie B playoffs, Torino will be looking to build a squad that is capable of achieving a return to Serie A in the forthcoming campaign, under their new coach Giampiero Ventura. The signing of Ebagua certainly seems to be a positive one, and whilst he cannot be described as being a prolific goal scorer throughout his career, he scored 12 goals from 28 games to help newly promoted Varese to an impressive 4th place finish last season.

At just 25 years old, there is also plenty of room for improvement for a player who was been described by his former Varese coach, Giuseppe Sannino as being ‘self-sacrificing’ as well as being a ‘born fighter’, which are characteristics Torino have lacked in their team in recent seasons.

By completing his transfer to Torino, Ebagua is returning to the club that he began his career at, as he was in the youth set up at Toro, before being released in 2005 due to the clubs financial difficulties. The Nigerian born striker is not the only player who has gone on to have a successful career after being released by Torino in 2005. Federico Marchetti, Robert Acqafresca and Fabio Quagliarella were all released under similar circumstances, and it certainly makes one wonder where Torino would be today had they not gone bankrupt in 2005.

Torino have had to pay Varese a significant sum of 1.2 million euros in order to sign Ebagua on a Co-Ownership deal, and young defender Gaetano Carrieri has moved in the opposite direction as part of the transfer. The purchase of Giulio Ebagua increases the likelihood that Torino’s captain and talisman Rolando Bianchi will be departing, with a number of Serie A clubs interested in the former Manchester City striker.

Varese 3-0 Torino

Torino's hopes of achieving automatic promotion were dealt a huge blow, as they succumbed to a disappointing 3-0 defeat to newly promoted Varese. Whilst this result still keeps Toro in the top six, and therefore still in the playoff positions, they now find themselves ten points away from Novara, Siena and Atalanta who are tied at the top of the table with 43 points. However on this evidence Torino will need to improve drastically in order to keep their hopes of promotion alive, which may lead to more signings in this January transfer window.

Torino held their own in the first 45 minutes, with Alessandro Sgrigna forcing the Varese goalkeeper into a good save, however in injury time of the first period, Varese took the lead. After hesitant defending by the away side, Alessandro Frara unleashed a fierce left footed shot into the net. Just three minutes after the restart, and once again Torino conceded from a set piece, with Claiton dos Santos making it 2-0. Alessandro Budel came off the bench as Toro endeavoured to find a way back into the match, however this left spaces in the defence, allowing substitute Fabio Concas to complete the scoring. Things got worse for Torino as midfielder Daniele De Vezze was sent off for two yellow cards late on.

Varese V Torino Preview

Torino will be looking to gain revenge today for the 2-1 home defeat they suffered at the hands of newly promoted Varese on the opening day of the season. Whilst Torino have certainly improved since the start of the season, the game will definitely be a difficult one, as Varese occupy 4th position in the table, and are unbeaten at home, with five wins, and five draws from their ten home games.

The game will be played at Stadio Franco Ossola, named after the Varese born ex Torino player who was a member of the 'Il Grande Torino' team, and tragically died in the 1949 Superga Air Disaster.