Cagliari vs Palermo
2016/17 Italian Serie A.
Date: Monday, 31 October 2016
Kick-Off: 20:00 UK,
Venue: Stadio Sant’Elia (Cagliari).
Both sides are struggling at the wrong end of the table in the Italian top-flight ahead of the clash in Sardinia, with reigning Serie B champions Cagliari in 15th place seven points above Palermo, who are 19th.
The hosts had made a strong start to their return to the top division after embarking on a run of three consecutive win that included an impressive 2-1 victory over Internazionale of Milan at the San Siro.
However, that result appears to have been the undoing of Massimo Rastelli's side, who have conceded a whopping nine goals in their last two matches.
After being on the wrong side of an eight-goal thriller in the 5-3 defeat against Fiorentina last weekend, they were comprehensively swept aside 4-1 by Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday.
Rastelli will be encouraging his players to draw on the inspiration behind their winning streak, as they search for what would be a first victory in five against Palermo.
The Rosanero are on a run of five matches without a win - losing four of those - and find themselves seven points adrift of safety.
Despite the arrival of Roberto de Zerbi to replace Davide Ballardini at the start of September, their fortunes have not improved after letting in 11 goals across their three most recent outings.
Following 4-1 thrashings by Torino and Roma, they went down 3-1 at home to Udinese on Thursday and finished the match with 10 men after Roland Sallai was sent off with eight minutes remaining.
The match kicks off at 8pm GMT on Monday with both sides desperate to get back to winning ways as soon as possible in Serie A.
Cagliari vs Palermo: Head-to-head statistics
Cagliari have seen over 2.5 goals in their past 11 Serie A games.
Palermo have lost their past three matches, whilst shipping at least three goals in that period.
The Rossoblu have scored at least twice in each of their past six home ties.
Cagliari are 10-4-6 in their past 20 home matches against teams ranked below them in the table.
Palermo are 7-9-4 in their last 20 away games against teams also in the bottom half of the table.
Cagliari vs Palermo: Prediction
Scoring isn’t necessarily a problem for Cagliari, who have netted at least two goals in their past six home games, but keeping clean sheets is a whole other matter. The Rossoblu have only failed to score in 20 per cent of their home games and have won three out of their last four; in fact, their 5-3 defeat to Fiorentina was the first defeat in their first five home matches.
With both sides having porous defenses, expect quite a few goals in this one. Palermo’s poor attack, however, puts them at a huge disadvantage, as although Cagliari keeps shipping goals, at the very least they are still scoring on a more regular basis. Palermo are also missing Slobodan Rajkovic, Giancarlo Gonzalez and Simone Guiliano in defense, complicating an already unpleasant situation that much more. Expect the Rossoblu to use their home pitch advantage to the fullest to edge out a Palermo side who look set to be involved in yet another relegation battle this season.
Cagliari vs Palermo: Betting tips
Both teams to score – YES at 4/6 (1.67)
Over 2.5 goals at 7/10 (1.70)
Cagliari to WIN at 8/11 (1.73).
