Chievo-Cagliari

By: Jeremy | March 6th, 2009

Coming in to the season, Cagliari and Chievo were considered two of the favorites to be relegated. Cagliari was seen as relegation fodder because they are typically in that battle every year and allowed too much talent to leave without being replaced all after a miracle run to survive last year. Letting the coach go who lead them to safety did not help. Chievo was seen as a favorite for the obvious reasons which is just returning from Serie B and being the least talented team coming in to the season.

Despite the predictions, both teams have done better then expected. Cagliari, after a horrible start, until just recently has been one of the top teams in Serie A. Even after recent inconsistent results, they still sit in 7th place looking at a possible European spot. Chievo after the slow start that was expected has started to show some consistency, including going to Bergamo last week and beating Atalanta 2-0. While they are still sitting in the relegation zone, they are hoping this is not their high mark for the season in the same way that Cagliari is hoping the Juve match was not their high mark.

So where does this leave both teams coming in to this week?

Coach Allegri is trying to motivate his team after the past few weeks results and sees this game as one that if a win is achieved, then they can head to Genoa and play a direct match to strengthen a position for a european place. This sudden change from just wanting to get 40 points to survive is really an indication that he feels his players are not fully motivated, especially on the offensive end so he is trying to make them believe they can achieve more then just surivival. Maybe his lowered expectations are to blame for some recent mediocre play by his club who surely feels they have met their objective for survival.

While we barely beat Lecce, were unlucky in Milan, but showed no motivation in last weeks draw at home to Torino, these results stemmed from the lack of creativity by the strikers. While Acquafresca thinks he is Inters next hero and Jeda is getting feelers from Roma and talks like he wants to play for the Azzurri, their perforance in recent weeks does not match the hype even if they have both had good years overall. They must remember that if they are going to get out of the relegation mindset and into the competition for Europe, the season is 38 weeks instead of just a few weeks where you get motivated because you dont want to play in Serie B. This mindset problem is what may keep Cagliari from taking that next step forward so quickly from relegation surviver to european hopeful.

Chievo is pretty much where they hoped to be. They didnt want to be buried in a relegation position early in the season ala Ascoli a couple of years ago and hoped with time that they could create some consistency, while winning enough matches to stay close to safety, and then finding a way to show they deserve their nickname by surviving. So far they have done that and the consistency is there as they are unbeaten in their last five games with only an unlucky loss to Fiorentina. With Reggina starting to slip and Lecce, Torino, Bologna, and maybe even Siena in their sights, they think survival is really possible and that will motivate a team to get a result this week, especially against a team that seems distracted or unmotivated like Cagliari.

This is a game both teams feel they need if they are going to meet objectives. Cagliari is moving through the easiest part of its schedule but has become stagnant. They need a win to make the harder games later worth playing. Chievo has to feel like they can get points at home against a lethargic and overachieving team. They are getting Cagliari at a good time to get points. This should make for an interesting match with Chievo at home.

If Jeda or Acquafresca show nothing like they have the past three weeks, Cagliari loses. They cannot rely on 1-0 wins to happen because of brief piece of genius by a midfielder like Biondini, Cossu, or Fini, guys are who not regular threats to score. They need the big dog strikers to step up. Cheivo will feel like motivation, recent confidence, and better team play against slightly superior talent will allow for a win. It honestly could go either way.

Prediction

Chievo 1-1 Cagliari