If you want to know what tension feels like in Serie B, look no further than the fever sharpening at the MAPEI Stadium. Reggiana and Bari square off Saturday and, make no mistake, this is more than a mid-table skirmish. Three points separate these sides, both embroiled in a race to escape the undertow of the relegation zone and grasp the thread of hope the playoff chase represents. It’s games like this—dense with urgency, seasoned by desperation—where seasons can turn on a single moment. And sources close to both camps say neither manager is sleeping very well tonight.

Reggiana haven’t exactly set the division alight, but there’s resilience in their DNA. They come in 11th place, but their last five have told a story of bloody-minded survival: two wins, three draws, one loss, and just five goals conceded. The 2-1 comeback win over Cesena was all grit. That day, Elayis Tavsan and Manolo Portanova played as if possessed, combining for two goals in four minutes and redefining the rhythm of the entire match. Portanova’s drifts between the lines have become Reggiana’s engine—he’s already notched vital goals in tough spots, and sources inside the club call him “the heartbeat of our press.” With Natan Girma and Manuel Marras orchestrating from midfield, there’s no shortage of ingenuity, but what worries insiders is their blunt edge up front. Averaging under a goal per game in the last stretch, the finishing must sharpen, especially against a Bari side desperate to steady their own ship.

Bari, for their part, sit awkwardly in 16th—six points from seven games—and their run has been the definition of uneven. They finally snapped a winless streak by toppling Padova with goals from Gabriele Moncini and Leonardo Cerri, but before that, grim losses to Palermo and Modena tested the patience of supporters and board alike. Moncini, the lone bright spot all autumn, has three goals in his last five and a knack for finding space where none exists. Don’t sleep on Christian Gytkjær either—the veteran Dane is a high-odds pick for first scorer, and staff say his movement continues to ask the hardest questions of opposition defenses, even when the service behind him sputters. Wide man Matthias Verreth and the creative Anthony Partipilo can engineer danger if they’re given time on the ball, but Bari’s problem has been transitions: too slow out of blocks, too vulnerable once possession breaks down.

Tactically, expect a brutal midfield battle. Reggiana will look to set pressing traps, relying on Portanova to shuttle between deep and advanced positions, while Marras and Tavsan try to stretch the play against an often rigid Bari backline. Bari—sources indicate—have drilled all week to defend in numbers, betting on quick counters that spring Moncini and Gytkjær into isolated duels with Reggiana’s center halves. If Cerri gets space to playmaker, Bari could exploit the one area where Reggiana have looked suspect: defending cutbacks from the edge of the box.

There’s little margin for error here. The bookmakers, insiders say, suspect this will be a cagey affair—most tip under 2.5 goals with good reason. Both attacks have sputtered, neither defense looks airtight, but the stakes mean risk-aversion may trump any cavalier attacking plans. Still, if anyone’s primed for a breakout, it’s Portanova for Reggiana and Moncini for Bari. The managers know that a draw does precious little; three points could redraw their season’s boundaries.

But this isn’t just numbers and tactics. This is a gut-check. Reggiana fans are starting to rumble that a lack of clinical finishing will doom them to another year of purgatory, while Bari’s ultras have made it clear: the time for excuses is over. The tension will be heavy at kickoff—expect crunching tackles, tempers near the boiling point, and a physicality uncorked in every fifty-fifty.

In truth, this is the kind of match that will be decided by which side wants it more—the one that finds a moment of genius or bravado when the game dies for breath. Sources tell me Reggiana’s camp feels this week is their time to send a message. Bari, though, know the cost of another missed opportunity; the pressure on Moncini and Gytkjær will be suffocating.

Prediction? Don’t expect a goal fest. Expect a war of nerves, an individual moment tilting everything. If Reggiana’s midfield imposes itself early, Portanova could be the difference-maker. But should Bari’s counterpunching click, Moncini or Gytkjær might just steal it at the death.

In Serie B, survival is earned in matches like this—and Saturday at MAPEI, both clubs will know exactly what’s at stake.