Our prediction for this Serie A match:
Napoli
Match Time & Date:
16/12/2023
18:00
Prediction: 2-0
Cagliari
Following a routine 2-0 win over Braga, Napoli will look to give fans yet another reason to celebrate when they take on Cagliari in the Serie A round 16. The Neapolitans managed to put an end to their three-game losing run in all competitions and they are seen as hot favourites to beat Cagliari as well. A man to watch in the home team will be Victor Osimhen, who sealed the victory against Braga, while both Mathias Olivera and Mario Rui remain on the sidelines with injuries.
The Rossoblu, on the other hand, made a brilliant comeback against ten-man Sassuolo on Monday evening, but given their poor away record, we predict that the hosts are going to pick up all three points from Saturday’s encounter. As for the away team, Antoine Makoumbou is back from suspension, while fellow midfielder Marko Rog remains on the sidelines with an ACL problem.
Highlighted Player (Stanislav Lobotka):
Born in Trencin on November 25, 1994, Stanislav Lobotka is a Slovakia international who plays for Celta Vigo in La Liga. Lobotka began his youth career at his hometown club AAC Sparta Trencin and he made his senior debut for fellow local club Trencin. In 2013 he signed a loan deal with Dutch side Ajax, but he played for Jong Ajax during the 2013/2014 season.
In the summer of 2014, the Slovakian midfielder returned to Trencin, where he made 74 appearances in the league in total. In 2015 Stanislav Lobotka joined Danish side Nordsjaelland shortly before the transfer window closed. Lobotka made his debut in the Danish top flight against Brondby on August 30, 2015.
Two years later he decided to make a step forward in his career, signing a five-year contract with La Liga side Celta Vigo. Speaking of his international career, the Celta Vigo midfielder made his Slovakia debut against Austria in November2016. It has to be noted that Lobotka became the first Slovak to score at Wembley, finding the net in a 2018 World Cup qualifier against England.
Highlighted Team (Cagliari):
Cagliari are a professional football club based in Cagliari, Sardinia. I Rossoblu (The Red and Blues) compete in Italian Serie A and the club’s biggest success came in 1970, when they won the national championship.
Cagliari finished the season in top position in the standings, four points clear of Juventus and it has to be noted that Luigi Riva led Cagliari to their first Serie A trophy.
I Rossoblu welcome their rivals at Stadio Sant’Elia and the capacity of the stadium is 16,000. In the 1993/1994 season Cagliari made it to the UEFA Cup semis, with the team suffering a loss to fellow Italian club Inter in the two-legged tie.
Giuseppe Pancaro helped Cagliari record a 3-2 win over Inter in the first leg, but I Rossoblu were hammered by the Nerazzurri in the second leg (3-0). Palermo are regarded as Cagliari’s main rivals and the two teams square off against each other in the Derby delle Isole.
