Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Serie A match.
In the current campaign, Parma and Cagliari are responsible for the excitement in the top tier of Italian football. Ahead of their head-to-head clash, bookmakers highlight the hosts as favourites, giving them slightly better odds for victory. However, the Sardinian side could still surprise — it's risky to bet on a straightforward win for the hosts.
Parma Calcio 1913
In the first five rounds, Parma delighted their fans with a win over AC Milan (2:1) and eight goals — in the bottom ten, only Hellas Verona (10) and Atalanta (11) have scored more. According to xG, the team ranks in the top seven of Serie A (9.14), and a 2:2 draw away to US Lecce showed they can snatch results through sheer determination. In that match, the team scored twice in injury time, with all the goals coming from players who came off the bench.
Cagliari Calcio
In the middle of last week, Cagliari ended their five-match winless streak — all their victories so far have come in the Coppa Italia against lower division opponents. Setbacks against US Lecce (0:1), SSC Napoli (0:4), and Empoli (0:2) have left the team at the bottom of the league table — they are already the main candidates for relegation. The Sardinian side has only one goal to their name — the departure of Claudio Ranieri has been a painful process.
Parma Calcio 1913 vs Cagliari Calcio Prediction
We’ll go for a reliable handicap (0) on the hosts, who are performing more consistently and cohesively. Parma will create more chances than crisis-hit Cagliari.
