Cagliari-Juventus Preview

By: Jeremy | February 2nd, 2008

After last weeks miraculous comeback and three points that were unexpected, Cagliari hits the road to play Juventus. Although Cagliari does not have the class of Juventus, this could be the best possible week to play one of Italys best teams.

Juventus has a few starters who will be out of action this week and is coming off a midweek loss to Inter in the Coppa. Cagliari has to be flying as high as possible for a team that won its first game last week in three months. All this could add up to Juventus looking past Cagliari and maybe a surprise result can be achieved. Cagliari needs to get points as the weeks of the season slowly dwindle. Juventus does not want to lose its top four place with Inter and Roma the class of the league and Milan working its way up to a Champions League position.

Foggia is expected to start this week and it is clear how much of a difference he makes for Cagliari. When he came on as a substitute last week against Napoli, the offensive threats increased and the pressure he helped create lead to two last minute goals. Cagliari will need a full 90 minutes of pressure from him to have a chance. The fact he was not transferred makes this a positive week and hopefully he can get fully settled for a final push to avoid relegation.

Expect Cagliari to play their typical style which is to pack the back, shorten the game, and look for any offensive chances on the counter attack or set pieces. I dont like this style at all, but without any consistent offense, the coach seems to want to keep the game in reach hoping for miracles like last week.

Expect a spirited performance by Cagliari and for Juventus to see this as a recovery game for their recent woes. I would love a tie and a point, but I see Juve doing just enough to win.

Prediction 2-1 Juventus.