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Sassuolo logo
Serie A | Gameweek 1
Sep 20, 2020 at 5pm UK
MAPEI Stadium - Città del Tricolore
Cagliari logo

Sassuolo
1 - 1
Cagliari

Bourabia (87')
Chiriches (59')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Simeone (77')
Farago (7'), Nandez (16'), Rog (51')

Preview: Sassuolo vs. Cagliari - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's Serie A encounter between Sassuolo and Cagliari, including team news and injury news.

Sassuolo return to Serie A action on Sunday evening looking to build on claiming eighth spot in the standings last season.

As for Cagliari, they make the trip to the MAPEI Stadium having only finished in 14th position during the most recent campaign.


Match preview

Roma boss Eusebio Di Francesco pictured in December 2018© Reuters

There was a time last season when Sassuolo were chasing down teams in the race for seventh spot, a scenario which emerged through eight matches without defeat.

However, having claimed four points from games against Lazio and Juventus in July, I Neroverdi failed to capitalise, losing three of their final four matches.

Despite eighth spot representing the second best finish in their history, there was a feeling of disappointment after finishing as many as 11 points behind Napoli.

Although consolidation will still be deemed acceptable for the season ahead, Roberto De Zerbi will have ambitions to retain their status as best of the rest behind the elite clubs.

They square off against opponents in Cagliari who have followed two managerial changes in 2020 with the appointment of Eusebio Di Francesco, who is motivated to right the wrongs of his brief spell at Sampdoria.

The Italian lasted just eight matches in all competitions, six of which ended in defeat in Serie A, but that should not detract from the fact that Cagliari have pulled off a coup to attract him to their club.

Successful spells at Sassuolo and Roma are still fresh in the memory, and there is every expectancy that the 51-year-old will be given the time to build something at the Sardegna Arena.

With teams from the top eight to come in his opening three matches, however, Di Francesco has not been provided with the ideal start to life with Gli Isolani.

Sassuolo form (pre-season friendlies): WWL

Cagliari form (pre-season friendlies): WD


Team News

Jeremie Boga pictured for Sassuolo in October 2019© Reuters

Jeremie Boga will miss Sassuolo's opening match of the season as he continues his recovery from injury.

The home side must also make do without Federico Peluso, who is serving a suspension carried over from the last campaign.

Meanwhile, Di Francesco is expected to hand Cagliari debuts to Razvan Marin and Riccardo Sottil.

Marin will take the place of Radja Nainggolan, who is back at parent club Inter Milan for the upcoming campaign.

Gaston Pereiro, Alberto Cerri and Luca Ceppitelli will all sit out this weekend's fixture through injury.

Sassuolo possible starting lineup:
Consigli; Muldur, Santos, Ferrari, Kyriakopoulos; Obiang, Locatelli; Berardi, Djuricic, Haraslin; Caputo

Cagliari possible starting lineup:
Cragno; Farago, Walukiewicz, Pisacane, Lykogiannis; Nandez, Marin, Rog; Sottil, Simeone, Pedro


SM words green background

We say: Sassuolo 2-1 Cagliari

Despite a poor end to last season, Sassuolo will be motivated to turn around their form over the coming weeks. While Cagliari should theoretically only improve after the appointment of Di Francesco, it may take some time for him to stamp his mark on his new side.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting that both teams will score (BTTS - yes) in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.BTTS Yes:data


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Game History

Who will win Sunday's Serie A clash between Sassuolo and Cagliari?

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Cagliari
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12Sampdoria134361618-215
13Cosenza CalcioCosenza134631313014
14Modena133551819-114
15Reggiana133551315-214
16Carrarese133461115-413
17Salernitana133461318-513
18SudtirolSudtirol134181420-613
19Cittadella13337619-1312
20FrosinoneFrosinone13175818-1010


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