Cagliari vs Juventus prediction, preview, team news and more | Serie A 2020-21
Fresh from their calamitous UEFA Champions League exit, Juventus face Cagliari at the Sardegna Arena, hoping to relaunch their bid for the Serie A title.
The 17th-placed hosts sit two points above the relegation zone, although Torino have two games in hand. Juventus, meanwhile, are in third, 10 points behind leaders Inter Milan.
Leonardo Semplici's fairytale start as Cagliari boss included wins over Crotone and Bologna, and their resurgance continued against Sampdoria last week.
Cagliari looked dead and buried after a two quickfire goals gave Sampdoria a 2-1 lead in the 80th minute.
Radja Nainggolan stepped up and fired a thunderbolt of an equalizer in the sixth minute of injury time to spark scenes of wild celebration.
Juventus went into their UEFA Champions League knockout tie with impressive wins over Spezia and Lazio.
Despite playing with 10 men, Porto took the Bianconeri to extra time. Sergio Oliveria's free-kick ensured that Adrien Rabiot's late goal to make it 3-2 on the night went in vain.
The tie ended 4-4 on aggregate, with Juventus going out on away goals.
Cagliari vs Juventus Head-to-Head
Juventus' last trip to Sardinia turned out to be historic as Cagliari beat them for the first time in 11 years, winning 2-0. Juventus have won eight out of the 10 most recent games, with the sole draw coming in the 2014-15 season.
The two teams last met in November, with the Bianconeri running out comfortable 2-0 winners thanks to a Cristiano Ronaldo brace.
Cagliari form in Serie A : D-W-W-L-L
Juventus form in Serie A : W-W-D-W-L
Cagliari vs Juventus Team News
Cagliari
Charalambos Lykogiannis and Leonardo Pavoletti are suspended for this game after accumulating too many yellow cards. Marko Rog and Riccardo Sottil remain on the sidelines, with the rest of the squad available for this game.
Gabriele Zappa should replace Lykogiannis in the left-wingback role, but Simplici is likely to stick to the same lineup that has worked for him so far.
Injured: Marko Rog, Riccardo Sottil
Doubtful: Matteo Tramoni, Sebastian Walukiewicz
Suspended: Charalambos Lykogiannis, Leonardo Pavoletti
Juventus
Andrea Pirlo lost Merih Demiral to injury in the aftermath of the loss to Porto, although Leonardo Bonucci and Matthias De Ligt are back fit.
Juan Cuadrado is also a doubt for this game. Rodrigo Bentancur is in isolation, with Giorgio Chiellini back in training.
Pirlo might be tempted to rotate his squad, but his options are somewhat limited.
Injured: Paulo Dybala, Merih Demiral
COVID-19: Rodrigo Bentancur
Doubtful: Juan Cuadrado
Suspended: None
Cagliari vs Juventus Predicted XI
Cagliari Predicted XI (3-5-2): Alessio Cragno (GK); Ragnar Klavan, Diego Godin, Luca Ceppitelli; Nahitan Nandez, Alfred Duncan, Radja Nainggolan, Razvan Marin, Gabriele Zappa; Joao Pedro, Giovanni Simeone
Juventus Predicted XI (3-4-1-2): Wojciech Szczesny (GK); Danilo, Leonardo Bonucci, Matthias De Ligt; Federico Chiesa, Adrien Rabiot, Weston McKinnie, Alex Sandro; Dejan Kulusevsji; Alvaro Morata, Cristiano Ronaldo
Cagliari vs Juventus Prediction
Cagliari shocked Juventus at the end of last season, but the Bianconeri were already champions by then. Juventus will still be reeling from their UEFA Champions League exit. Leonardo Simplici's side are on a high and will be aiming to secure a surprise result against the Italian giants.
Giovanni Simeone could score for the home side, but with Cristiano Ronaldo on the pitch, Juventus are always favorites for the win.
Prediction: Cagliari 1-2 Juventus