Cagliari’s early-season push for European places meets a stern examination as Inter Milan arrive in Sardinia. The Islanders come in buoyant after a 4-1 win over Frosinone in the Coppa Italia, which made it three straight victories following league success against Lecce by 2-1 and a 2-0 triumph over Parma in the previous cup round.
They have not managed three consecutive top-flight league wins since April 2021, and matching that feat will also require a first set of back-to-back home Serie A victories since November 2023. Encouragingly, Cagliari have recovered more points from losing positions than any other Serie A side this season, with 4, so an early setback may not be terminal to their chances.
Inter edged Sassuolo 2-1 last weekend to string together back-to-back competitive wins for the first time this term. The 5-0 dismantling of Torino on matchday one already feels distant after three subsequent league games were settled by a single goal, one win and two defeats, so heavy favouritism carries limited weight with Christian Chivu’s men sitting below their hosts in the table. The away form underlines the task, with just 3 wins from their last 10 league trips alongside 3 draws and 4 defeats, and the onus is on Inter to show they can control a tricky away assignment.
Recent history strongly favours the Nerazzurri. Inter are unbeaten in 14 of the last 15 league head-to-heads against Cagliari with 12 wins, 2 draws and 1 defeat. They have also won 8 of the last 9 away league meetings, including each of the last 5, a sequence that speaks to a sustained tactical and physical edge in this fixture.
The trends point towards goals and a lively tempo. Four of Cagliari’s last 6 home league matches produced exactly 3 goals, while the Islanders are yet to score inside the opening 30 minutes in Serie A this season. Eight of Inter’s last 9 league matches saw the first-half result repeated at full time, suggesting early patterns often persist. Inter matches have averaged 12.5 corners per game ahead of this round, the highest in the division, which hints at sustained pressure and frequent wide deliveries.
Individual threats could decide it. Mattia Felici found the net in the midweek cup win, and 4 of his last 5 club goals have come at home, a useful habit for Pisacane to lean on. Lautaro Martínez has a personal best return of 11 goals in 11 appearances against Cagliari and has scored in each of the last 5 head-to-heads for a total of 7 in that span, with Inter winning every time. Team news favours the visitors, with Inter close to full strength. Cagliari remain without Zito Luvumbo, while Gabriele Zappa will be assessed late.
