Five places separate Monza and Cagliari in the Serie A table heading into this weekend's gameweek 29 clash at the U-Power Stadium on Saturday.
The home side are back in mid-table after winning three in four, while Claudio Ranieri's in-form team have moved from 19th to 15 after recent positive results in their survival battle.
Match preview
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Monza's two-game winning run came to a crashing halt in a 4-1 loss to Roma two weekends back, but the Biancorossi's 3-2 win over Genoa last time out took them back into 10th in Serie A for the first time since round 16.
Admittedly, Raffaele Palladino's troops had hovered around that position for weeks, oscillating between 11th and 12th, and they hope to leapfrog a Lazio side in ritiro and having to deal with Maurizio Sarri's departure this week.
The home side had gone three without losing in front of their supporters before in-form Roma ended that run, but they could restart another undefeated run at the U-Power Stadium this weekend.
Monza have had an underwhelming home return this season, claiming only five wins on their turf, outdoing only five clubs in the league, including two of the bottom three.
Having gone unbeaten in five of their last six home matches against this weekend's opponent, Palladino's men hope to continue that run against a side in fine form.
With an improvement in their Serie A performances and results since the turn of the year — five wins in 10 games, as many as they managed in their campaign's first 18 matches — the Biancorossi should back themselves this weekend.
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Ranieri's men are not expected to be straightforward opponents, with the Rossoblu heading into gameweek 29 in fine form, having secured eight points from 12 in their last four games.
The ongoing four-match run without losing has elevated Cagliari from second-bottom to 15th, replacing Empoli, who have now lost two matches in succession under Davide Nicola after an initial unbeaten start to life with the Azzurri.
One of the victories in Cagliari's run was a 1-0 win over Nicola's troops at the start of March, the Sardinians' first road victory of the campaign, and they hope to secure back-to-back away wins in 2023-24.
Interestingly, the visitors have never won three league matches on the trot in Ranieri's two tenures at the club, with their last three-game winning sequence coming under Leonardo Semplici in April 2021.
At the ground of an opponent where maximum points have not been claimed since 1990, Cagliari face an uphill task on Saturday, keen to end that 24-match winless run at Monza.
Team News
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Papu Gomez's doping ban still rules him out of action for the foreseeable future — he was banned for two years in October 2023.
Roberto Gagliardini is ruled out until April with a shoulder injury, as is Samuele Vignato (muscle); however, Danilo D'Ambrosio is doubtful and is seemingly nearing a return to action.
Andrea Colpani's 11 involvements in goals (seven goals, four assists) is a joint-high for Monza — Patrick Ciurria and Carlos Augusto achieved the same last season — and the 24-year-old needs one more to become the stand-alone holder of that feat for the Biancorossi.
Marko Rog (knee) and Zito Luvumbo (thigh) are not expected back for Cagliari until the end of the month, but Leonardo Pavoletti (foot) is absent until April; Marco Mancosu (knee) is doubtful, and the midfielder should be checked before Saturday's game.
Gianluca Gaetano has already netted three times for Ranieri's men since joining the club at the start of February — no Italian player has netted more — and he could supplant Monza's Matteo Pessina and Bologna's Riccardo Orsolini this weekend.
Monza possible starting lineup:
Di Gregorio; Birindelli, Izzo, Mari, A. Carboni; Pessina, Bondo; Mota, Colpani, V. Carboni; Djuric
Cagliari possible starting lineup:
Scuffet; Zappa, Mina, Dossena, Augello; Nandez, Makoumbou, Jankto, Deiola; Gaetano; Lapadula
We say: Monza 1-1 Cagliari
The spoils could be shared on Saturday, with Cagliari's form possibly seeing them avoid losing at the U-Power Stadium.
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