Roma vs Cagliari

Roma aims to restart their Serie A success on Sunday by hosting Cagliari at Stadio Olimpico.

After his former team Roma defeated Athletic Bilbao 2-1 in the first leg,coach Claudio Ranieri now meets his old squad in the Serie A to try for UEFA qualification.

Les Giallorossi lost 3-1 against Athletic Bilbao in Bilbao while playing with ten men after defender Mats Hummels received a sending-off early in the game for obstructing a goal-creating opportunity.

The Spanish side Athletic took advantage of their extra player throughout the match to score three goals after Roma previously won the earlier encounter 2-1 in Rome.

During Ranieri's final ten games as Giallorossi interim coach there remain several different objectives which lie ahead for Roma.

Throughout this calendar year the Italians have amassed the highest points total while undefeated in 12 league games and achieving nine victories. The Roma team now competes for a position among the top four teams in Serie A.

Roma secured both their fifth straight Serie A victory while inching closer to six straight victories last season under Luciano Spalletti.

Roman manager Luciano Spalletti (59.2%) holds the highest winning percentage among Roma coaches since Claudio Ranieri (57.3%) leaves to tend another team closely related to his heart.

Sunday's home team demonstrated that their current streak continues as they completed nine consecutive undefeated matches against Cagliari beginning in 2013 whereby they won all seven games together with seven clean sheets.

Claudio Ranieri initially made his mark with Cagliari by guiding the Rossoblu to back-to-back promotions during his first stint at the club. His debut as a head coach in Serie A came during the 1990-91 season. Decades later, he returned to the club and delivered impressive results once again. After securing another promotion from Serie B, the experienced manager ensured Cagliari’s survival in the top flight last season before seemingly stepping away from frontline management.

However, circumstances in his hometown of Rome prompted a change of plans. Meanwhile, his successor, Davide Nicola, has steered the Sardinian club to a position four points above the relegation zone with 10 games remaining in the current campaign. Following consecutive defeats, Cagliari managed to secure a draw against Genoa last week, keeping them on course to avoid relegation once more.

Nicola, known for his expertise in survival battles, has played a key role in helping Cagliari distance themselves from the relegation threat throughout 2025. Since the start of the year, the team has averaged over a point per game. However, maintaining this form at Stadio Olimpico could prove to be a significant challenge.