Serie A betting preview : Cagliari- Bologna ............
Jan 11, 2022
Last two Cagliari previews provided winners at odds of 2.14 and 3.40.
Serie A : Cagliari- Bologna
This game was delayed two days due to a COVID breakout in the Bologna squad and I am not sure what real difference two days makes beyond seeing what the extent of the issue is, so I suppose I have just answered my own question !
Cagliari will be up for this , a win in Genoa at Sampdoria in midweek took them up to the dizzy heights of 18th and they would move to within a point of safety with the victory tonight and open up a buffer over the bottom two. XP sees the hosts as six points better off than the actual table, Bologna two points worse and we did side with Cagliari on Thursday ...............
I previewed Cagliari's final home start of last year ..............
Just one win all season for Cagliari and a calendar year record of 7-12-22 for 2021. However, they are just two points from safety coming into this round and could enter the New Year outside the drop zone, were they to win. XP ranks them, albeit marginally, the best of the bottom three and Udinese are not the best travellers and are one of probably just four clubs outside the drop zone who could be dragged into the relegation dogfight and as such, this is a massive game for both, but especially Cagliari. The hosts have scored in 8/9 home starts, Udinese in 21/24 on the road, despite winning just 4 of the last 22, five of their last 11 of those have ,surprisingly ( as we don't tend to think of them as highscoring) , produced 6+ goals and this fixture does have "breakout potential". The two clubs got some shooting practice in midweek with respective 3-1 and 4-0 wins at home to lower league opposition in the Coppa Italia.
Fortunately I went with the "over" as Udinese won 4-0, Cagliari then finished their 2021 win a 2-0 defeat away to Juventus and it was an annus horribilis for them, with a beyond awful 7-12-24 record (0.77 ppg). They will be glad to wave goodbye to 2021 and to be honest, probably relieved that they are "only" six points from safety, it could be worse, it looks like 3/5 for the drop, Sampdoria have a buffer on 20 points , double that of the visitors but they could be dragged into the mix were Cagliari to win today. As bad as they have been on the road, this might not be a total lost cause for Cagliari and I have spoken often in the past, especially in tennis , of New Year being a chance to press the reset button . This is not a terrible match up for them, they drew 2-2 here in Genoa last season and won the reverse fixture 3-1 (one of only 7 wins in 2021) and the hosts are missing three starters from the last meeting and also their pre christmas game, to the dreaded trio of COVID, suspension and ACN, that weakens them a lot on the left flank, especially defensively.
That highlighted line is relevant now that they have started 2022 with the win and it provides renewed hope and a fresh beginning, or at least offers that opportunity.
Bologna also made the Thursday notes for their (late) postponed game with Internazionale when I noted ...........
Bologna are safely ensconced in mid table, with no relegation concerns and went into the Christmas mini break with a fine 3-0 win away to Sassuolo, however, that was another game where they overproduced in terms of goals to chances and in their last five starts they have scored 7 goals from an xGF of half of that (3.6) and, against the cream of Serie A their record is even more incredible, with 9 goals from an xGF of 3.30 in seven games versus top 8 opposition ! They obviously don't need much to find a goal or two and Inter have been conceding more chances than the recent goals against tally indicates (witness the numbers put up by Salernitana). The hosts have scored in 4 of the last 5 h2h meetings , with Inter winning three, including the reverse fixture this season 6-1 , the visitors are clearly the best team by far in Italy, but the break and early kick off time probably makes this closer to at least some degree and a 1-2 scoreline feels about right.
I used that to justify why they could score against an elite opponent, but today will do so to say that they cannot continue to underperform and overachieve in general terms, especially when very short handed. They also have the plane trip to make in these very strange times and when many teammates are already testing positive . The visitors have also lost on their last three visits here and failed to score in three of four trips to the island .
2 units Cagliari -0.25 ball 2.47 asian line.
Good luck !
We don't just sell football betting tips, as you can see there is an extensive analysis behind our asian handicap selections. Subscribing to our sports betting advice service need not break the bank. Learn more by visiting our subscriptions page.
Country:
Sport:
Competition: