Cagliari-Atalanta

By: Jeremy | October 30th, 2009

monkey8

Alright, I give up. I cant seem to figure out which Cagliari team will show up on any given gameday. Therefore I am officially turning over this blog to the Sardinian phonics monkey my Grandma just sent over from Sassari. Its a wonder she has anything left to give me as I assume she has been taking my advice on the games and losing her ass.

Ok, I am kidding and its easy to joke when your team is on a winning streak and it has beaten two teams who were considered some of Serie As best to start the year.

What can you say about the Lazio game other then be glad we won. The goal scored by Matri to start the second half was more about the bad play of a Lazio team that is scared of its own shadow. The end result is that Cagliari after two wins in a row sits in 13th place, a step from Europe but still within distance of the relegation places.
The bottom line is Serie A has a big group of teams that despite all the drama you read about for each of them, are very close when it comes to players, talent, mental strength, coaching, and overall results. Not that I am racing fan, but its similar to spending millions in testing, crew, and drivers to find that extra tenth of a second that will turn your team from mediocre to newsworthy. We are still looking for that extra tenth of a second.

However you want to look at it, we now return home to the Sant Elia to play an improved Atalanta team that seems to be emerging from its early season doldrums to making a move to solidify its typical middle of the table spot.

Despite the slight improvement, Atalanta is powder keg where a couple of bad results will make the problems return that caused Antonio Conte to become the new man in charge. This team to me is always like Siena in that they finish higher then they should and I wonder how they are not relegated. Maybe this is the year we will see both of these overrated teams go down. While all seemed well for Atalanta after a win against Roma, the shine that comes with a new coach has worn off and they showed it by laying an egg against Livorno and their star player Doni was extremely pissed that he was substituted early in the second half. As with Lazio, this may be the time to get these guys on the pitch.

One key note about this game as it could mark the return of Acquafresca to Cagliari after having spent two years dramatically improving his standing with Cagliari while becoming a fan favorite. While he was expecting a starting place at Inter when he left Cagliari he ended up going to Genoa in a deal and soon not deemed worthy enough to start so they loaned him to Atalanta where he is still looking to establish himself. By leaving one small team for another, he has hindered his development and his Chinaglia like attitude can cause him to turn into a star or a journeymen who will be 25 and looking old before you know it. He will want to show that he is still a star in the making this weekend and while he did not play against Livorno, he should play against his former club.

Cagliari continues to make it anyones guess as to how they will play. They give up important points to teams like Siena and Catania, yet win some road games against up and coming Bari and the always solid Lazio amongst others. What was once a strong home team has now turned into the road warriors of Serie A. Coming home against a team like Atalanta, following two great wins, it would seem that this game should be won also without much hesitation. Not so says the Sardinian phonics monkey.

This is another good chance for Cagliari to take that next step up to mid table respectability. A third win in a row against a team like Atalanta will put them solidly midtable and give the team the confidence needed to pull off a win against Samp.

Allegri is still pushing the same buttons trying to get offense from an inadequate strikeforce while hoping the strong midfield pressures the other side into clumsy errors allowing for easy goals all while relying on a very inconsistent back line in front on Marchetti. This is the recipe for inconsistency we will see until the strikeforce is improved via the full time play of Nene or the addition of a midfielder to the second striker position. One of those scenarios is going to happen before you know it.

With the two good results in the past week, I cannot in good conscience pick against the boys this weekend. The team is winning and as Lazzarri has stated, the mood around the club is very positive. Combine this with the Atalanta star player coach clash and look for a third victory in a row and renewed expectations that seemed to exist when the year began.

Prediction:
Cagliari 2-1 Atalanta

Prediction record to date: 3-7