# 2021–22 AC Monza season

The 2021–22 season was Associazione Calcio Monza's 40th season—and second in a row—in the Serie B, the second level of Italian football. The club ended the Serie B campaign in fourth place, and participated in the promotion play-offs. After defeating Pisa after extra time in the final, Monza were promoted to the Serie A for the first time in their history. They also participated in the Coppa Italia, the Italian domestic cup, and were eliminated in the round of 64.

## Pre-season and friendlies

On 15 July 2021, Monza played their first pre-season friendly against Real Vicenza in Ronzone; the match ended in a 14–0 win. They then followed with a 5–0 win against Eccellenza side Anaune Val di Non five days later. Monza finished their training camp in Ronzone on 24 July, by beating newly-promoted Serie C club Pro Sesto 3–0.
On 31 July, Monza played Juventus in their first Trofeo Luigi Berlusconi game; Juventus won 2–1. Monza played their last two pre-season friendlies on 4 and 8 August, drawing 1–1 to Pro Patria, and winning 3–0 at home against Giana Erminio.
    Results list Monza's goal tally first.
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers |
| 15 July 2021 | Real Vicenza | Neutral | 14–0 | Marić (5), Colpani (3), Gytkjær (2), Machín (2), Armellino, D'Alessandro |
| 20 July 2021 | Anaune Val di Non | Neutral | 5–0 | Carlos, Marić (3), Siatounis |
| 24 July 2021 | Pro Sesto | Neutral | 3–0 | Gytkjær (2) 23' (pen.), 43', Carlos 30' |
| 31 July 2021 | Juventus | Home | 2–1 | D'Alessandro 87' |
| 4 August 2021 | Pro Patria | Away | 1–1 | Donati 89' |
| 8 August 2021 | Giana Erminio | Home | 3–0 | Brescianini 60', Marić (2) 72', 80' |
| 4 September 2021 | Sangiuliano City | Home | 1–0 | Machín |

## Serie B
### Overview

Monza began the season under Giovanni Stroppa, who was appointed in place of Cristian Brocchi. They played their first game on 21 August 2021, drawing 0–0 to Reggina away from home. Monza's first three points came on 29 August, in their first game at home, in a 1–0 win against Cremonese; Christian Gytkjær scored Monza's first league goal of the season, assisted by Pedro Pereira. In September, Monza opened with two 1–1 draws, to SPAL and Ternana respectively, before losing their first league game on 21 September, in a 2–1 defeat to Pisa. They ended the month in 11th place, with a 3–1 win over Pordenone from a comeback. On 1 October, Monza suffered a heavy defeat away to Lecce, with the 3–0 result moving Monza to 13th place.
Between 17 October and 11 December, Monza went through a 10-game unbeaten streak; they alternated away draws (to Parma, Vicenza, Crotone and Ascoli) to home wins (against Cittadella, Alessandria, Como and Cosenza), finishing with wins against Brescia and Frosinone in December. Key moments included Marco D'Alessandro's stoppage-time goal to help Monza beat Cittadella 1–0, José Machín's 30-meter goal in the 88th-minute which helped his side win 3–2 against Como, Dany Mota's consecutive braces at home against Como and Cosenza, and Monza's first away win of the season, a 2–0 victory over Brescia on 5 December. Thanks to their unbeaten streak, Monza climbed eight places and headed into 2022 in joint-third place.
Monza began the new year poorly, losing 3–1 away to Benevento; a 2–2 home draw to Perugia via a Patrick Ciurria stoppage-time penalty goal meant that Monza finished the first leg in sixth place. Their last game of the month was a 1–0 home win against Reggina. In February, after wins against SPAL and Ternana, Monza lost their first home game of the season after 11 matches, in a 2–1 defeat against Pisa. After a 4–1 away win to Pordenone thanks to a Mattia Valoti brace, Monza lost at home once again (1–0 to Lecce), closing February in sixth place. Monza went unbeaten in March, drawing once and winning four times; they climbed three positions, ending the month in third position. Most of their points came via last-minute goals, in the draw against Parma, and wins against Cittadella and Crotone.
After losing to rivals Como in April, Monza won against Ascoli and Cosenza 2–0, with Valoti and Gytkjær scoring a goal each in both games. With the two wins, Monza climbed to second place for the first time in the season, in a spot for direct promotion. Despite losing crucial points to Brescia and Frosinone, other results went in Monza's favour, who only dropped one position. They defeated fourth placed Benevento 3–0 at home via a Mota brace, and surpassed Cremonese in second place. Monza headed into the final matchday in May against Perugia needing a win for automatic Serie A promotion; Perugia won 1–0 and Monza finished the season in fourth place, qualifying to the promotion play-offs.

### Matches

    Results list Monza's goal tally first.
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance | Position |
| 22 August 2021 | Reggina | Away | 0–0 | | 5,825 | 12th |
| 29 August 2021 | Cremonese | Home | 1–0 | Gytkjær 65' | 2,501 | 8th |
| 11 September 2021 | SPAL | Away | 1–1 | Carlos 54' | 3,725 | 9th |
| 18 September 2021 | Ternana | Home | 1–1 | Mota 5' | 2,332 | 10th |
| 21 September 2021 | Pisa | Away | 1–2 | Mota 64' | 4,635 | 14th |
| 25 September 2021 | Pordenone | Home | 3–1 | Machín 13', Sampirisi 72', Vignato 90' | 2,001 | 11th |
| 1 October 2021 | Lecce | Away | 0–3 | | 8,442 | 13th |
| 17 October 2021 | Parma | Away | 0–0 | | 7,555 | 13th |
| 23 October 2021 | Cittadella | Home | 1–0 | D'Alessandro 90+1' | 2,521 | 11th |
| 27 October 2021 | Vicenza | Away | 1–1 | Mazzitelli 34' | 4,312 | 10th |
| 1 November 2021 | Alessandria | Home | 1–0 | Colpani 6' | 3,145 | 9th |
| 7 November 2021 | Crotone | Away | 1–1 | Colpani 17' | 2,226 | 11th |
| 21 November 2021 | Como | Home | 3–2 | Mota (2) 16', 29', Machín 88' | 5,625 | 8th |
| 27 November 2021 | Ascoli | Away | 1–1 | Valoti 33' | 3,942 | 8th |
| 30 November 2021 | Cosenza | Home | 4–1 | Colpani 11', Mota (2) 13', 22', Gytkjær 90+4' | 3,450 | 5th |
| 5 December 2021 | Brescia | Away | 2–0 | Gytkjær 40', Machín 55' | 5,080 | 5th |
| 11 December 2021 | Frosinone | Home | 3–2 | Carlos 70', Ciurria 87', Mazzitelli 90+2' (pen.) | 2,660 | 5th |
| 13 January 2021 | Benevento | Away | 1–3 | Valoti 47' (pen.) | 5,502 | 6th |
| 16 January 2021 | Perugia | Home | 2–2 | Valoti 45' (pen.), Ciurria 90+5' | 2,493 | 6th |
| 22 January 2021 | Reggina | Home | 1–0 | Mota 52' | 3,387 | 6th |
| 6 February 2022 | Cremonese | Away | 2–3 | D'Alessandro 54', Ciurria 84' | 4,062 | 7th |
| 12 February 2022 | SPAL | Home | 4–0 | Mota 45', Sampirisi 52', Ramírez 77', Colpani 89' | 3,212 | 5th |
| 15 February 2022 | Ternana | Away | 1–0 | Valoti 38' (pen.) | 1,713 | 5th |
| 19 February 2022 | Pisa | Home | 1–2 | Valoti 8' | 4,572 | 5th |
| 22 February 2022 | Pordenone | Away | 4–1 | Valoti (2) 19', 64', Colpani 24', Gytkjær 67' | 618 | 5th |
| 27 February 2022 | Lecce | Home | 0–1 | | 6,858 | 6th |
| 2 March 2022 | Parma | Home | 1–1 | Gytkjær 87' | 3,789 | 6th |
| 5 March 2022 | Cittadella | Away | 2–1 | Valoti 13', Ciurria 90+3' | 1,657 | 5th |
| 12 March 2022 | Vicenza | Home | 4–0 | Sampirisi 9', Barberis 84', Pasini 90' (o.g.), Mancuso 90+1' | 3,524 | 5th |
| 15 March 2022 | Alessandria | Away | 3–0 | Di Gennaro 41' (o.g.), Ciurria 62', Gytkjær 90' | 2,050 | 4th |
| 19 March 2022 | Crotone | Home | 1–0 | Barberis 90+5' | 3,601 | 3rd |
| 3 April 2022 | Como | Away | 0–2 | | 4,904 | 4th |
| 6 April 2022 | Ascoli | Home | 2–0 | Valoti 16', Gytkjær 28' (pen.) | 4,633 | 3rd |
| 10 April 2022 | Cosenza | Away | 2–0 | Valoti 16' (pen.), Gytkjær 64' (pen.) | 2,592 | 2nd |
| 18 April 2022 | Brescia | Home | 1–1 | Machín 49' | 7,504 | 3rd |
| 25 April 2022 | Frosinone | Away | 1–4 | Mota 13' | 6,631 | 3rd |
| 30 April 2022 | Benevento | Home | 3–0 | Mota (2) 48', 88', Gytkjær 53' (pen.) | 8,402 | 2nd |
| 6 May 2022 | Perugia | Away | 0–1 | | 6,828 | 4th |

### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 2 | Cremonese (P) | 38 | 20 | 9 | 9 | 57 | 39 | +18 | 69 | Promotion to Serie A |
| 3 | Pisa | 38 | 18 | 13 | 7 | 48 | 35 | +13 | 67 | Qualification for promotion play-offs semi-finals |
| 4 | Monza (O, P) | 38 | 19 | 10 | 9 | 60 | 38 | +22 | 67 | Qualification for promotion play-offs semi-finals |
| 5 | Brescia | 38 | 17 | 15 | 6 | 55 | 35 | +20 | 66 | Qualification for promotion play-offs preliminary round |
| 6 | Ascoli | 38 | 19 | 8 | 11 | 52 | 42 | +10 | 65 | Qualification for promotion play-offs preliminary round |
* 1 2 Pisa finished ahead of Monza on head-to-head points: Pisa 2–1 Monza, Monza 1–2 Pisa.

## Serie B promotion play-offs
### Overview

Having finished the regular season in fourth place, Monza gained direct access to the semi-finals of the promotion play-offs. They played against Brescia, winning both legs 2–1. On 26 May 2022, Monza played the first leg of the play-off final against Pisa; after leading 2–0, Monza conceded in stoppage time, with the match finishing 2–1.
Three days later, on 29 May, the two sides played the second leg in Pisa. After only nine minutes, the home side were leading 2–0. Machín's 20th-minute goal shortened the distance. In the second half, Gytkjær's 79th-minute equalizer meant that Monza were only 11 minutes from Serie A promotion. However, a last-minute goal by Pisa's Giuseppe Mastinu forced the game into extra time. Goals by Luca Marrone and Gytkjær gave Monza the win, and their first promotion to the Serie A. Gytkjær finished the play-offs with five goals in four games, and was nominated MVP of the play-offs.

### Matches

    Results list Monza's goal tally first.
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
| 18 May 2022 | Semi-final | Brescia | Away | 2–1 | Gytkjær (2) 44', 56' (pen.) | 13,600 |
| 22 May 2022 | Semi-final | Brescia | Home | 2–1 | Mancuso 70', D'Alessandro 90+4' | 8,559 |
| 26 May 2022 | Final | Pisa | Home | 2–1 | Mota 9', Gytkjær 74' | 9,649 |
| 29 May 2022 | Final | Pisa | Away | 4–3 (a.e.t.) | Gytkjær (2) 79', 101', Machín 20', Marrone 96' | 9,942 |

### Bracket

| Preliminary round | Preliminary round | Preliminary round | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| | | | 5 | Brescia | 1 | 1 | 2 | | | | | |
| 5 | Brescia (a.e.t.) | 3 | 4 | Monza | 2 | 2 | 4 | | | | | |
| 8 | Perugia | 2 | | | | | | 4 | Monza (a.e.t.) | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| | | | | | | | | 3 | Pisa | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| | | | 7 | Benevento | 1 | 0 | 1 | | | | | |
| 6 | Ascoli | 0 | 3 | Pisa | 0 | 1 | 1 | | | | | |
| 7 | Benevento | 1 | | | | | | | | | | |

## Coppa Italia

Monza were drawn in the round of 64 with Cittadella on 14 August 2021. Cittadella took the early lead in the eighth minute through Orji Okwonkwo, with Carlos Augusto equalizing for Monza 18 minutes later; five minutes before the end of the first half, Cittadella regained the lead with a Mamadou Tounkara goal. The match ended 2–1, and Monza were eliminated from the cup.
    Results list Monza's goal tally first.
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
| 14 August 2021 | Round of 64 | Cittadella | Away | 1–2 | Carlos 25' | 0 |

## Player details

    As of match played 29 May 2022
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Serie B | Serie B | Serie B play-offs | Serie B play-offs | Coppa Italia | Coppa Italia |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | ITA | Eugenio Lamanna | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | ITA | Giulio Donati | 31 | 0 | 25+4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 4 | MF | ITA | Luca Mazzitelli | 31 | 2 | 21+7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | ITA | Luca Caldirola | 28 | 0 | 21+3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | ITA | Giuseppe Bellusci | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | EQG | José Machín | 30 | 5 | 16+9 | 4 | 3+1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | ITA | Andrea Barberis | 40 | 2 | 30+6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | DEN | Christian Gytkjær | 38 | 14 | 15+18 | 9 | 2+2 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | ITA | Mattia Valoti | 31 | 10 | 23+8 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | ITA | Mattia Finotto | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | ITA | Leonardo Mancuso | 20 | 2 | 8+8 | 1 | 0+4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | GK | ITA | Daniele Sommariva | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | DF | POR | Pedro Pereira | 35 | 0 | 24+9 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | GK | ITA | Michele Di Gregorio | 42 | 0 | 37 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | ITA | Antonino Barillà | 4 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 18 | DF | ITA | Davide Bettella | 9 | 0 | 2+5 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | ITA | Andrea Favilli | 10 | 0 | 1+9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | GRE | Antonis Siatounis | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | URU | Gastón Ramírez | 6 | 1 | 1+5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | GK | ITA | Stefano Rubbi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | ITA | Matteo Scozzarella | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | DF | BUL | Valentin Antov | 7 | 0 | 3+3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | MF | ITA | Andrea Colpani | 37 | 5 | 21+12 | 5 | 0+3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 29 | DF | ITA | Gabriel Paletta | 21 | 0 | 14+4 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 30 | DF | BRA | Carlos Augusto | 37 | 3 | 31+1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 31 | DF | ITA | Mario Sampirisi | 30 | 3 | 17+10 | 3 | 1+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 33 | MF | ITA | Marco Brescianini | 6 | 0 | 2+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 34 | DF | ITA | Luca Marrone | 22 | 1 | 17+1 | 0 | 3+1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 47 | FW | POR | Dany Mota | 32 | 12 | 24+4 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 62 | GK | ITA | Andrea Mazza | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 66 | GK | ITA | Gianluca Ravarelli | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 77 | MF | ITA | Marco D'Alessandro | 36 | 3 | 20+11 | 2 | 1+3 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 79 | MF | ITA | Salvatore Molina | 21 | 0 | 15+2 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 80 | FW | ITA | Samuele Vignato | 13 | 1 | 5+8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 84 | FW | ITA | Patrick Ciurria | 39 | 5 | 17+17 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 98 | DF | ITA | Lorenzo Pirola | 14 | 0 | 4+6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Transfers
### Summer

Arrivals :
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Marco Brescianini | AC Milan | Loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Antonis Siatounis | Sampdoria | Free transfer | N/A | |
| 9 July 2021 | MF | Luca Mazzitelli | Sassuolo | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 12 July 2021 | MF | Mattia Valoti | SPAL | Loan | N/A | |
| 17 July 2021 | DF | Luca Caldirola | Benevento | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 23 July 2021 | DF | Pedro Pereira | Benfica | Loan | N/A | |
| 31 July 2021 | FW | Patrick Ciurria | Pordenone | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 11 August 2021 | MF | Samuele Vignato | Chievo | Free transfer | N/A | |
| 27 August 2021 | DF | Valentin Antov | CSKA Sofia | Loan | N/A | |
| 31 August 2021 | FW | Andrea Favilli | Genoa | Loan | N/A | |
| 31 August 2021 | DF | Luca Marrone | Crotone | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| Other transfers |||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 1 July 2021 | GK | Michele Di Gregorio | Inter Milan | Loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | DF | Stefano Negro | Perugia | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Alessandro Di Munno | Pro Sesto | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Marco Fossati | Hajduk Split | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Luca Lombardi | Teramo | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | José Machín | Pescara | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Tommaso Morosini | Feralpisalò | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Nicola Mosti | Ascoli | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Andrea Palazzi | Palermo | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Nicola Rigoni | Pescara | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | FW | Mattia Finotto | Pordenone | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | FW | Ettore Gliozzi | Cosenza | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 14 July 2021 | DF | Lorenzo Pirola | Inter Milan | Loan | N/A | |
Departures :
| Date | Pos. | Name | To | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Kevin-Prince Boateng | Released | Released | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | FW | Mario Balotelli | Released | Released | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | MF | Davide Frattesi | Sassuolo | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | FW | Federico Ricci | Sassuolo | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 7 July 2021 | MF | Andrea D'Errico | Released | Released | N/A | |
| 8 July 2021 | FW | Davide Diaw | Vicenza | Loan | N/A | |
| 8 July 2021 | FW | Edoardo Colferai | Villa Valle | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 13 July 2021 | DF | Filippo Scaglia | Como | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 17 August 2021 | FW | Mirko Marić | Crotone | Loan | N/A | |
| 24 August 2021 | MF | Marco Armellino | Modena | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 27 August 2021 | MF | Nicola Rigoni | Cesena | Loan | N/A | |
| 31 August 2021 | MF | Marco Fossati | Hajduk Split | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 31 August 2021 | DF | Armando Anastasio | Reggiana | Loan | N/A | |
| Other transfers |||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | To | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 1 July 2021 | GK | Michele Di Gregorio | Inter Milan | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 1 July 2021 | DF | Lorenzo Pirola | Inter Milan | Return from loan | N/A | |
| 16 July 2021 | MF | Nicola Mosti | Modena | Loan | N/A | |
| 20 July 2021 | MF | Luca Lombardi | Vis Pesaro | Loan | N/A | |
| 10 August 2021 | FW | Ettore Gliozzi | Como | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 26 August 2021 | MF | Alessandro Di Munno | Lecco | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 26 August 2021 | MF | Tommaso Morosini | Lecco | Loan | N/A | |
| 31 August 2021 | MF | Andrea Palazzi | Alessandria | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 31 August 2021 | DF | Stefano Negro | Triestina | Permanent | Undisclosed | |

### Winter

Arrivals :
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 7 December 2021 | MF | Gastón Ramírez | Unattached | Free transfer | N/A | |
| 5 January 2022 | MF | Salvatore Molina | Crotone | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 20 January 2022 | FW | Leonardo Mancuso | Empoli | Two-year loan | N/A | |
| Other transfers |||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 26 January 2022 | DF | Armando Anastasio | Reggiana | Return from loan | N/A | |
Departures :
| Date | Pos. | Name | To | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 4 January 2021 | DF | Giuseppe Bellusci | Ascoli | Loan | N/A | |
| 12 January 2021 | FW | Mattia Finotto | SPAL | Permanent | Undisclosed | |
| 12 January 2021 | MF | Antonino Barillà | Released | Released | N/A | |
| Other transfers |||||||
| Date | Pos. | Name | To | Type | Fee | Ref. |
| 26 January 2021 | DF | Armando Anastasio | Pordenone | Six-month loan | N/A | |