Thanks to a deadly first-half combination of Fabio Miretti and Ruslan Malinovskyi, who were sufficient to defeat Nikola Krstovic, Patrick Vieira's Genoa returned to winning ways on Friday night, defeating Lecce 2-1 in Serie A. As one of five changes to Vieira's team, Malinovskyi made his first appearance in the Genoa starting lineup in six months following his recovery from a fractured fibula. Following a 3-2 loss to Milan the previous week, Lecce made no changes for their trip to the Marassi.
A quarter-hour in, Miretti had an immediate impact after the return of Malinovskyi, who sent a fantastic clipped pass over the top into the area. Miretti then executed an acrobatic and forceful finish, slamming the ball over Wladimiro Falcone and into the roof of the net for a 1-0 lead.