How about Davide Biondini!!

By: Jeremy | January 19th, 2009

You know things are going well in Cagliari when my favorite player, Davide Biondiini can run onto a cross and calmly finish a nice goal with his left foot. After missing a gift chance against Inter the week before and never being known for his finishing, Davide gets his first goal of the season to give Cagliari a comfortable lead at home against a mentally unstable Udinese team who now has to be looking at falling into the relegation fight. Wins like this make the relegation battle so much easier and it was great to get a team when they are down.

For fans who want to see Davide interviewed, go to this link where you can see some highlights of the game and an extensive interview with Allegri and brief comments from Conti and Biondini, the goal scorers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XTQ0o2U5lA

This game was really indicative as to how some of our players have improved but also how important a goalie is to any team in a very tight Serie A. Just think Biondini could not get regular time on the team when it was bad enough to be relegated and now that they are much improved, he is an important cog in the midfield and clearly part of the starting eleven. For all the work Storari did last year and the concern we had over losing him, Marchetti has come in and has been every bit the keeper Storari was for us. He had a couple of nice save against Udinese and every player on the field for Cagliari has that extra bit of confidence that comes with having a great goalie behind you. For all the criticism we give management over moves or lack thereof, it is clear the team is improved and can feel competitive in any match so we must give the leadership our support. Cellino has been pretty quiet this year so the less he is in the headlines, the better job he is likely doing and the better the team is playing.

Now we sit on 25 points, basically a mid table team, and ten points clear of relegation. Teams like Catania and Lecce are dropping to where they should be, but where do we go from here? Safety when it comes to our club is never a foregone conclusion, but since week six, we have been one of the better teams in Serie A, so do you sit back and do nothing or make the moves to make a run for a UEFA Cup place next year? I guess it all comes down to how much money there is to be spent and who realistically can we catch without damaging our plans to spend in the offseason.

Teams like Palermo and Genoa have really done well of late and with Roma moving up, Atalanta showing their stuff against Inter, and the mainstay teams all where they are expected to be, even with some additions, can we really finish better then 8th or 9th? Probably not. Adding a player or two might show the current players that ownership believes the team is good enough to compete for Europe which can only enhance their confidence, but there is a unity in the dressing room that you do not want to disturb by adding players who arent really that much better then what you have, if they are better at all. If you add a Kaka, who cares what potential issues exist in the dressing room, but if you add a player or two who arent playing regularly for Napoli or another Serie A team, the addition could do more harm then good. Ultimately this club needs to do what is best to make sure an adequate replacement is found for Acquafresca when he leaves in the summer. If that means holding on to some money in the winter and not spending, then so be it. For all the rumors out there, the only one that makes me look twice is Reginaldo from Parma who could give us some more speed and depth with little fanfare or problems, but with the potential for major results.

If we could just have those first five weeks back where even if we earned 4-5 points in those games, we would really be happy in Sardinia and adding players would really be more of a focus but for now, while we have done well of late, surivival is still the goal and never a foregone conclusion. Hopefully our bad spell was early in the year and we will now see the up and down results we are known for but which should get us to safety sooner rather then later.

With the first half over, we now play the five teams where we got no points to begin the season. Lazio away wont be easy, Siena at home should get us some points, and with Juve, Atalanta, and Lecce to follow, it is really the easier part of the schedule relatively speaking. To get no points from these easier run of games and to be where we are now is still amazing when looking back.

Serie A is simply a tough league and we have to be happy where we are while also looking at what we can do to be better. We cannot be too confident and must look at where we will get the points needed for safety. Good results against Lecce and Siena with maybe a surprise against Juve or Lazio could really make us relaxed quickly. Good results can also lead to more good results and vice versa. Udinese is now playing like we did to start the season and we do not want to fall back in the pattern of losing or we can follow them down the standings.

All and all another good week and lets see what we can do to surprise a Lazio team who is a little better then we are. In the meantime, lets give a big cheer to Biondini. It is great to see a hard working player like him appear on the scoresheet.