Cagliari vs Arezzo – News and Probable Lineups

Cagliari Calcio will face SS Arezzo at the Unipol Domus on Friday as part of the Coppa Italia round of 64.

This match will mark Cagliari’s first competitive home game against a newly promoted team to Serie B, providing them with a good opportunity to build confidence, while Arezzo will look to create an upset as they aim to disrupt the occasion.

Match overview

Fabio Pisacane will guide Cagliari into their opening competitive fixture of the season on Friday, welcoming Arezzo for the round of 32 in the Coppa Italia at the Unipol Domus.

Pisacane’s inaugural year in charge saw Cagliari finishing 14th in Serie A with 43 points, achieving their highest league position since the 2016-17 season, and fulfilling all the objectives set by the club.

This accomplishment led to him securing a contract extension until 2028, with an option for another year, as the club viewed this as a step towards continuity following the early confirmation of their safety and the development of young talents like Marco Palestra.

Arezzo arrives at this fixture after a solid 2-0 victory over Union Brescia in the preliminary round, courtesy of goals from Alessandro Arena and Camillo Tavernelli, setting Cristian Bucchi’s squad on course for their challenging trip to Sardinia before they kick off their Serie B season against Avellino later this month.

The Isolani have utilized the pre-season to incorporate a revamped attacking unit, featuring Gennaro Borrelli, Giuseppe Aurelio, Kevin Carlos, and Daniel Maldini, although Borrelli is currently managing a thigh strain with targeted fitness sessions.

Cristian Bucchi’s Arezzo will be making the trip to Sardinia this Friday for their round of 32 Coppa Italia matchup against Cagliari at the Unipol Domus, marking their second competitive outing of the season.

Last season was a standout in the club’s recent history, as Arezzo clinched Group B of Serie C and made a swift return to Serie B following a 3-1 victory over Torres, fending off a late push from the Sardinian team.

Bucchi’s squad set a strong precedent, amassing 24 points from their initial nine games, thus breaking a 22-year-old club record that was previously held by Mario Somma’s promotion-winning team of 2003-04, although they experienced a dip in form mid-season that allowed their rivals to close in without overtaking them.

In terms of cup performance, it wasn’t as successful: the Cavallo Rampante had their Coppa Italia Serie C campaign end in the Round of 16 at home, falling to Latina on penalties, who proceeded to reach the final before losing to Potenza.

This season kicked off with a 2-0 victory against Union Brescia in the preliminary round at the Stadio Citta di Arezzo, allowing Alessandro Arena’s first-half goal and a late Camillo Tavernelli free-kick to set up a challenging fixture against Serie A opposition.

Team News

Cagliari has most of their roster available for the match against third-tier opponents, though they will miss Raphael Kofler and Riyad Idrissi due to injuries.

Paul Mendy, Yael Trepy, and Kingstone Mutandwa all found the net during the pre-season and will be eager to keep that momentum going into the new campaign, with Mutandwa likely starting from the bench.

Arezzo is facing a fitness concern with attacking midfielder Emiliano Pattarello still recuperating from a pubalgia issue that caused his absence during the pre-season.

Both Alessandro Arena and Camillo Tavernelli, who played key roles in the 2-0 success over Union Brescia, are anticipated to be in the starting lineup this weekend.

Cagliari possible starting lineup:

Caprile; Pedro, Obert, Rodriguez; Winks, Adopo, Romano, Deiola, Fazzini; Trepy, Mendy

Arezzo possible starting lineup:

Nunziante; Renzi, Gilli, Illanes, Righetti; Hall, Cleric, Ionite; Tavernelli, Cerri, Arena

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