For the last time as Cagliari manager and potentially the last time ever, Claudio Ranieri takes to the touchline on Thursday, when his side welcome Fiorentina to Unipol Domus in Serie A action.
The hosts overcame doomed Sassuolo last time out to assure themselves of top-flight survival, but their visitors had to settle for a 2-2 draw with 2022-23 champions Napoli.
Match preview
By consigning Sassuolo to second-tier football for 2024-25 on Sunday, where strikes in the second half from Matteo Prati and Gianluca Lapadula did the damage, Cagliari guaranteed their place among the Italian elite for the new season, albeit one where Ranieri will not be overseeing proceedings from the dugout.
After ensuring the Rossoblu's spot at Calcio's top table, Ranieri was confirmed to be departing his post at the end of the season, and the man who led Leicester City to the unlikeliest of Premier League title triumphs in 2016 is now anticipated to step away from the game entirely.
Before the wily 72-year-old puts his feet up, though, Thursday's hosts can shoot up two places in the rankings by overcoming their upcoming foes, as the 15th-placed Rossoblu are sat just one point adrift of Hellas Verona and Lecce with just 90 minutes of action remaining.
Sending Sassuolo down marked the end of a five-game winless sequence for Ranieri's men, whose return to the top flight can be considered a success as they gear up for a second straight season in Serie A, and only three of their last 13 matches in the division have ended in defeat.
Furthermore, each of those losses took place on the road, and the Rossoblu have a six-match unbeaten run to protect on their own patch on the final day, although 15 of Cagliari's last 16 contests at Unipol Domus have seen the hosts both score and concede.
The goals were also shared around the pitch when Fiorentina made the trip to a Napoli outfit who ceded their 2022-23 crown to Inter Milan with a whimper, as Cristiano Biraghi and M'Bala Nzola had seemingly done enough to propel La Viola to victory after Amir Rrahmani's opener.
However, Georgian talent Khvicha Kvaratskhelia followed up Biraghi's free kick with a set-piece strike of his own to steal a slice of the spoils for Napoli, leaving Vincenzo Italiano's side up against it when it comes to forcing their way into Serie A's top seven.
Eighth in the division with 54 points on the board, Fiorentina are six behind seventh-placed Lazio with a match in hand and therefore need to win both of their games while hoping that the Biancocelesti slip up against relegated Sassuolo if they are to sneak into the Europa League positions.
Of course, La Viola would earn a ticket to Europe's secondary competition by virtue of winning the 2023-24 Europa Conference League final - an intriguing date with Olympiacos is sandwiched in between Serie A ties with Cagliari and Atalanta BC - but their form outside Artemio Franchi does not inspire a world of confidence.
Indeed, Italiano's men have accrued just nine points from the last 36 on offer in Serie A away matches, but they have avoided defeat in each of their last six meetings with Cagliari - keeping clean sheets in five of them - as they bid to deny Ranieri the perfect footballing farewell.
Team News
Whatever lineup Ranieri puts out for his Cagliari swansong, he will have to do without centre-back Alberto Dossena, suspended on account of picking up his fifth yellow card of the campaign in the beating of Sassuolo.
Jakub Jankto (muscle) and Antoine Makoumbou (knee) are taking up beds in the Rossoblu infirmary, and the hosts also lost the long-serving Nahitan Nandez in the dying embers of Sunday's success, but it is not clear how severe his problem is.
The 28-year-old Uruguayan may therefore be denied an on-field farewell before an expected transfer to Roma this summer, while Adam Obert is well-placed to deputise in Dossena's absence at the back.
In contrast, Fiorentina manager Italiano has no suspension concerns to factor in for Thursday's tie, and the only fitness worry for the hosts is attacker Riccardo Sottil, whose shoulder injury means that he will miss this game and the Europa Conference League final.
Both Jonathan Ikone and Andrea Belotti shook off knocks to come off the bench against Napoli, though, and with ample time to recover before the meeting with Olympiacos on May 29, Italiano should not be averse to going full strength with the Serie A top seven at stake.
Nzola could therefore hold off Belotti at the tip of the attack thanks to his strike against the Partenopei, although Ikone is certainly a candidate to demote Christian Kouame down to the bench.
Cagliari possible starting lineup:
Scuffet; Zappa, Obert, Mina, Augello; Deiola, Sulemana; Nandez, Shomurodov, Gaetano; Lapadula
Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
Terracciano; Dodo, Milenkovic, Martinez Quarta, Biraghi; Bonaventura, Arthur; Gonzalez, Beltran, Ikone; Nzola
We say: Cagliari 1-1 Fiorentina
Cagliari playing at home almost always means goals at both ends of the field, and the added incentive of giving Ranieri the send-off he deserves will be an incredibly strong motivation for the Rossoblu to end the season on a high.
Meanwhile, Fiorentina's exploits on the road often leave a lot to be desired, and as minds wander towards the Europa Conference League final, Ranieri's side can feel hopeful of stealing a point before the 72-year-old calls time on his illustrious career.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
body check tags ::
Previews by email
