Pre-match
Stefano Pioli trotted out the same XI that thrashed Polissya, while the hosts didn’t pull anything crazy either, although it was a bit chilling to see exes Michael Folorunsho and Yerry Mina in the lineup, and yes, that’s foreshadowing. Roberto Piccoli, who’ll be moving to Florence in the coming days, was notably absent. There were very few Fiorentina fans in the stands, too, after local officials decided not to allow them in after some recent clashes between the two sets of supporters.
First half
It was one
way traffic from the opening kick, I’m afraid. Cagliari bulldozed the Viola, bullying them and not allowing a single shot, while constantly winning the ball in the middle third and motoring the other way. The trio of Nicolò Fagioli, Simon Sohm, and Cher Ndour was painfully inadequate, with the latter in particular failing to impose himself. Robin Gosens somehow kept it scoreless by sweeping a Folorunsho header off the line, but that was the only real highlight. Moise Kean had all of 2 touches. It was a dire 45 minutes without any real positives.
Second half
Rolando Mandragora replaced Ndour at the break and Fiorentina at least offered a bit of a threat, although it remained an ugly game without anyone really showing their quality outside Nicky Beans, who tried to set the tempo but didn’t have any help. Just when it all seemed pointless, the Viola struck: the otherwise-anonymous Albert Guðmundsson fizzed in a cross from the right and Mandragora headed it off the post and in. It was the team’s first shot on target and it sure felt like the Mandrake’s celebration was aimed straight at Daniele Pradè, for whom this contract renewal negotiation just got considerably more complicated.
Now able to sit back and protect a lead, Fiorentina looked a bit more comfortable as Cagliari had to commit more bodies forward and leave a bit of space. Kean badly missed a close range chance from a corner that was more difficult than it looked—he didn’t have a good view of the ball until it was right on him—and overplayed another on the break, but the hosts also threatened, with David de Gea forced into several saves, including one excellent stop on Gianluca Gaetano with 10 minutes to go. It felt like maybe that was the closest the Sardinians would get until stoppage time, when an unmarked Sebastiano Luperto headed home Gaetano’s free kick.
Full time
Goals: Luperto 90’+3 (ass. Gaetano); Mandragora 68’ (ass. Guðmundsson)
Cards: Obert 43’, Borrelli 46’, Mazzitelli 82’, Kiliçsoy 90’+6; Pongračić 71’, Marí 79’
What’s next
It’s a “home” game at the Mapei for the second leg of the Conference League playoff against Polissya on Thursday. My guess is that Pioli rotates the side heavily for that one in light of the 0-3 win in the first leg, which also saw Kean sent off. After that, it’s another road trip, this time north to take on Torino. Hopefully, Pradè will have filled out the squad a bit by then, because its current incarnation isn’t good enough.
