Siena v. Cagliari-Week 2 Relegation Battle?

By: Jeremy | September 12th, 2008

I am still smarting from last weeks loss to Lazio, but what makes it worse is that everything I read makes it sound like we got slaughtered. We were up 1-0 well into the second half and then Lopez gets a red card for a handball. Did anyone see that play. Hes on the goal line and has an easy clearance to save Marchetti who came out to challenge the play and when hes trying to kick the ball, he swings and misses and the ball hits him in the hand. While clearly clutzy, hardly an act of desperation to save a sure goal. Lazio gets a penalty, we go down a man, and they add three more. Its like we got slaughtered, the coach is going to be fired, and we are clearly relegation fodder. Give me an effin break. Id almost rather read the non stop non stoies about the big clubs and their players. I mean Kaka has a hangnail. Moriinho paid too much for cable TV. Adriano likes beer. I see 200 stories like this before I see anything about Cagliari or another bottom level team. So we signed Luccarelli from Fiorentina? Big deal. That makes as much sense and helps us about as much as Storari signing for Fiorentina. I guess that is all we have to report, but i wish there was more sometimes. So many teams in Serie A are simply forgotten until the final few weeks of the season when relegation become as much fun to watch as the chase for the Scudetto.

Sometimes the story of the bottom teams like us until we win is just the rage and passion we feel after the match. Maybe its better our players irrelevant stories are just not fodder for the internet.

I know ifs and buts can change the outcome of a game, and even if the facts show we deserved to lose, we werent destroyed by Lazio the way a 4-1 final might indicate. Now all the pundits have us buried at the foot of the table for eternity.

Needless to say, it was not a good start to the year and we could easily be in last place for a long time, but lets see what happens this weekend on the road against Siena before we start determining the final outcome of the season for us. This attempt at burying us now is almost as laughable as Milan firing Ancellotti because he lost the opening game. Europe is such a different world. Joking aside, this game means a lot for us.

Siena is one of our main rivals for relegation and they lost their opening road game 1-0 to Atalanta. Now they face a relegation game at home where they need to win more then we do. Week two results are just important as any other week, so both teams need to be ready. Siena, luckilly for us, will be without their only good player,Maccarone. He is suspended for his shenanigans in last weeks game so their offense will be even more inept then usual. Even at home against a poor Cagliari defense, they will be more hardpressed to score without him..

Cagliari though is not looking much better on paper as Acqauafresca again wont play. Is the silver lining of his absence more of Larrivey and his scoring prowess? Lord knows we need Bobby, but if his not playing allows for the emergence of another striker, then we will be a better team when he does get healthy. Lopez obviously wont play for us, but despite my fondness for him as a long serving player, we need to get talent to replace him permanently. As long as he continues to play first team football, it shows our defense is still weak. With the new Argentine transfer from Independiente soon to be playing in our back four. Lopezs days are numbered and that spaz clearance should be a hint of his luck for the future. With or without him, even an anemic Siena offense, especially in their home opener, will be a threat to score.

You hate to say a week 2 matchup is vital, but points aside, we need to have a full strength team play against a fellow relegation struggler to see where we are. While players are still finding themselves and getting into match shape, we may show to be much better then Siena or vise versa. The likely result is that both of these teams will show why so many have them at the bottom of the standings come week 38.

I am positive about this match and the team because of the equal strength play against a good Lazio team. Its too early to assume we suck even if we likely arent as good as I might think or hope. I also will take the absence of Acquafresca in exchange for the absence of Maccarone. As with Lazio last week, I think we are getting Siena at the best possible time. All teams are hyped for their home opener, but ill take a bad team, minus its best player any day. If we cant beat them this week, things wont get any easier and a win is certainly possible for us.

That being said, I only see one outcome as these teams are still trying to find themselves this early in the season….

Siena 0-0 Cagliari.