Cagliari-Catania

By: Jeremy | April 3rd, 2009

Now that the international break has wound down, we return to Serie A where we face Catania at home in an island derby. Both teams have to be pleased with where they are and this match is surprisingly not a relegation six pointer as many thought it would be at the beginning of the season.

We can talk ad nauseum about Allegris success with Cagliari this year, but in the background is Walter Zenga who has done an equally remarkable job with Catania. Despite seeing one of his better players transferred in the winter, he has still managed to keep his club safely out of the relegation zone. One more win should eliminate any relegation worries for the year and to do so this early is a great achievement for them.

Any time there is a week off in games, the rumor mill seems to heat up regarding players who play for smaller clubs who have done well or either belong to a big clubs and are looking to return home. We all know about the speculation about Acquafresca, but behind the scenes Marchetti has been talking to Milan about moving to a big club. Luckilly the news seems pretty positive as Marchetti has made it clear he will be staying with Cagliari for now. Despite being one of the better goalies in Serie A and with youth on his side and the suppot of Buffon for future international duty, Marchetti is not going to take the jump. Look for him to stablize our team for atleast another year.

As for this weekend, other then Lopez and maybe Pisano, we should have all of our players. With our home record and Catanias road record, we should win this game. We are currently tied for 7th with Palermo and an impressive win over a very bad Bologna team in our last match stopped what was a slump. Whether we are true european contenders is still up in the air, but a win this weekend is a must and there is no reason to think we cant get it. Acquafresca wants to finish strong as he wants to return to Inter to play, not to be loaned out again next year. If he scores a bunch of goals for us in these last few matches, maybe he can convince Mourinho not to spend big bucks on a striker. As of now, that would likely be the plan.

The week off and the excitement to get back and continue momentum might make this derby a little more exciting. Games between these clubs are typically boring and defensive, but since both clubs feel good about their position, we should see a relaxed more open game this weekend. We are not ready to give up on european dreams for next year and this weekend should show it.

Prediction

Cagliari 3-1 Catania