Roma look to build on their two wins in a week when they visit Cagliari in the Serie A. Jose Mourinho’s team has scored six goals without answering to kick off October. They are hoping to carry that momentum into the international break. Their opponents, though, are still searching for their first victory since being promoted.
Preview (Cagliari vs. Roma)
Roma’s 4-1 humiliation at the hands of Genoa saw them match their worst start to a season since 2010. The capital club has moved past a trying month and recorded back-to-back victories. Romelu Lukaku and Lorenzo Pellegrini both scored in victories over Frosinone and Servette. It helps to lighten the Eternal City’s mood. The Giallorossi resorted to their new striker and captain in times of trouble. They have maximum points in Group G of the Europa League. They also have a commanding lead over faltering rival Lazio in the Serie A rankings. Roma will look to take advantage of a favorable game schedule this weekend.
Jose Mourinho has led his squad to Sardinia, where the Giallorossi has recently performed well. He has only overseen one previous league victory this season. It was against an Empoli team that was then at the bottom of the table. Roma has lost just one of their last nine road games against Cagliari. It is especially amazing considering that they failed to bring home three points in 11 visits.
The odds are stacked against Cagliari this weekend based on both history and form. They have lost 11 of their last 16 league meetings against Roma, winning just one. Claudio Ranieri, a seasoned coach, welcomes one of his many previous teams to Sardinia. His team has lost its last three games and is still searching for its first victory since being promoted. Cagliari have never had as few as two points from their first seven games in the top level. They have suffered losses to Atalanta BC, Milan, and Fiorentina. The last of which was a 3-0 setback at Stadio Franchi last week.
Team News
Roma captain Lorenzo Pellegrini contributed to the team’s 4-0 victory against Servette on Thursday. He is expected to miss the trip to Cagliari due to a hip injury sustained late at Stadio Olimpico. While Renato Sanches, Tammy Abraham, Marash Kumbulla, and defensive pairing Chris Smalling and Diego Llorente are undoubtedly unavailable, the Italy midfielder might join them on the sidelines. Paulo Dybala should start for the Giallorossi after a midweek respite, and Leonardo Spinazzola and Rui Patricio are likely to move up to the starting lineup as well. Romelu Lukaku, who has three goals in his first five Serie A games for Roma, is in the lead-up front. Since the 1990s, only Gabriel Batistuta (eight), Dani Osvaldo (four), and Stephan El Shaarawy (five) have started their Serie A careers better.
Andrea Petagna, who is most likely to start, has three goals from his last four league starts versus Roma, all of which came from penalties, although he has yet to score this season and has only registered five shots. Andrea Petagna is an ex-Napoli striker. Eldor Shomurodov, an Uzbek forward presently on loan from Roma who would love nothing more than to score against his own club, may team up with Petagna. Even a Roma team that struggles to create results away from home should have too much firepower for the Isolani to contain, therefore Cagliari’s winless streak will continue. Even if the visitors are injury-hit and have a wealth of attacking talent, they can win three games in a row overall, lessening the strain on Jose Mourinho.
Cagliari 0 – 2 Roma
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