Salernitana missed the chance to claim almost guaranteed Serie A survival on Saturday after Diego Perotti had a late penalty saved in a 1-1 draw at Empoli which also sent down bottom team Venezia.
Perotti’s spot-kick was pushed aside by man-of-the-match Guglielmo Vicario, who made a series of superb saves to stop Salernitana from gaining a win which would have moved them five points clear of the relegation zone ahead of their rivals matches this weekend.
Davide Nicola’s team sit 17th and two points ahead of Cagliari who are just inside the drop zone and face title-chasing Inter in Sunday’s late match.
The draw is a not a dreadful result as Cagliari must beat reigning champions Inter to move out of trouble in place of Salernitana.