They had to win and win they did. And then some. Federico Guidi’s Primavera youngsters clinched the result they needed to be sure of reaching the Viareggio Cup knockout stages in emphatic fashion today, thrashing Cremonese 4-0 to set up a round-of-16 meeting with PSV Eindhoven. After opening their 2015 Carnival Cup campaign with a 3-2 success over Nordsjaelland and suffering a 2-0 reverse against Cesena last time out, the Viola U19s needed to win by a three-goal margin in their final group game to ensure progress to the next stage. Bangu’s first-half penalty meant Guidi’s side were ahead on the day but still two goals short of qualification. They came after the restart courtesy of a Bandinelli brace before Gondo put any lingering fears to rest by smashing home a late fourth. As it turned out, three teams (Fiorentina, Cesena, Cremonese) all finished Group 4 level on six points, with the Viola’s superior goal difference in head to heads seeing them go through as group winners. Fiorentina will now enjoy a two-day break before tackling PSV at 15:00 on Tuesday for a place in the quarter-finals. ]]>