Our prediction for this Serie A match:
Cagliari
Match Time & Date:
01/04/2024
15:00
Prediction: 1-1
Verona
Monday’s football game at Unipol Domus pits together Cagliari and Verona, the two teams who are level on points in the Serie A standings. The Rossoblu aim to recover from a 1-0 loss to Monza and the fact that they defeated Salernitana 4-2 in their last home game is surely fuelling fans with optimism ahead of the visit of Verona. All Andrea Petagna, Leandro Pavoletti, Marco Mancosu, and Marko Rog are out of contention with injuries for the home team.
The Mastini, on the other hand, aim to bounce back from a 3-1 loss to Milan. Anyhow, a low-scoring encounter is on the cards in Sardinia as both Verona and Cagliari are likely to adopt a cautious approach in the relegation six-pointer. As for the visitors, midfielder Romas Suslov continues to miss out with an ankle problem, while forward Juan Manuel Cruz faces race against the clock to bet fit for Monday’s game.
Highlighted Player (Gianluca Lapadula):
Gianluca Lapadula, also known as Lapagol, due to his goalscoring abilities, was born in Turin and started his career at Juventus youth team, but was released because he wasn’t doing well in his studies. After the departure with Juventus, Lapadula perfected his goalscoring skills in lower Italian leagues and even spent one year in NK Gorica, Slovenia.
During his spell in Ravenna, he managed to finish the season 2012/13 as the top scorer in the group, netting 24 goals in the process. For a long period of time, the 28-year-old was Parma’s player, but he went on loans often, and, after Parma went bankrupt, Lapagol moved to Pescara. With 30 goals in 43 appearances, the striker caught the eye of Serie A giant Milan. He netted his first goal for the Rossoneri only three minutes after he came on as a substitute.
The following season Lapagol became the striker of Genoa. Even though he was called to play for Peru, the Genoa hitman decided to represent Italy, getting his first call to the senior squad in November 2016. However, he never made an official appearance for Italy, since he only played an unofficial friendly against San Marino, when he scored a hat-trick.
Highlighted Team (Verona):
Founded back in 1903, Hellas Verona are a professional football club that compete in the Italian Serie A. The “Mastini” are well known for their yellow and blue jerseys and they welcome their opponents at Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi. Hellas Verona share rivalry with Chievo Verona and the two local rivals face each other in the “Derby della Scala”.
The first derby of Verona was played on November 18, 2001, with Hellas Verona emerging triumphant (3-2). In 1985 the Mastini won their first and only Scudetto, with the team finishing the season in top position in the Serie A standings, four points clear of second-placed Torino. The likes of Preben Elkjaer, Giuseppe Calderisi, Hans-Peter Briegel, Pietro Fanna and Antonio Di Gennaro led Hellas Verona to the historical success.
However, the most famous footballer who played for Verona is Romania international Adrian Mutu, who scored 16 goals in 57 appearances in the league for the Stadio Marc’ Antonio Bentegodi outfit. Verona will compete in the Italian top flight in the 2017/2018 season as they finished the 2016/2017 Serie B campaign in second position in the table.
