Struggling in Serie A but thriving in Europe, Lazio return to domestic duty on Saturday, when they host improving Cagliari at Stadio Olimpico.

A run of one point from three league matches has seen the Rome club slip down the standings, but Champions League victory over Celtic took them into the last 16 of UEFA's top club competition.

Match preview

Resulting in their worst start to a season for a decade, Lazio have picked up only 17 points from their first 13 Serie A matches and sit 11th in the table, already well adrift of Italy's top four.

Last week's loss in Salerno followed a dull goalless draw in the Derby della Capitale, and the Biancocelesti's only wins during November came in the Champions League.

Three days after ex-Lazio winger Antonio Candreva struck Salernitana's spectacular winner at Stadio Arechi - Maurizio Sarri's men had gone in front through a Ciro Immobile penalty but then let their lead slip - the capital club welcomed Group E rivals Celtic to Rome.

Reeling from their sixth Serie A defeat of the season, Lazio were held at bay by the Scottish champions for most of a tense encounter, but captain Immobile emerged from the bench to seal his team's place in the Champions League knockout phase.

The striker's late brace followed his crucial winner against Feyenoord earlier in the month, so for all their strife on the domestic scene, at least Sarri's side have something to look forward to at the start of 2024.

More immediately, Lazio must get their league campaign back on track before the current top four race off into the distance. With that in mind, they perhaps could not have picked better opponents to tackle on Saturday evening.

Without a win throughout their last 16 Serie A meetings with Lazio, losing on no less than 13 occasions, Cagliari clearly have a complex when it comes to their counterparts from the Eternal City.

Nonetheless, they travel to Rome this time around boasting a far better recent record than the Biancocelesti, having accrued seven points from their last four Serie A matches - just one fewer than they managed from the previous 20.

Since winning promotion back to Italy's elite level via the playoffs, Claudio Ranieri's men had struggled to get to grips with life in the top flight, but a remarkable turnaround over the past few weeks has lifted them off the bottom of the table.

The Sardinian side saw off Genoa shortly after battling back from three goals down to stun another promoted club, Frosinone, as well as securing progress to the Coppa Italia's third round in between.

Last week, Cagliari resumed action following the international break - before which they narrowly lost to Juventus - with a 1-1 draw at home to Monza, failing to retain an advantage gained in the 10th minute through centre-back Alberto Dossena.

However, the Rossoblu still have a meagre tally of just two points from their first six away fixtures, and should they now lose at Stadio Olimpico it would represent the club's worst haul at this stage of a season since 2005.

Team News

While midfielder Matias Vecino returns following a one-match European ban, and Luis Alberto is also available after missing last week's loss to Salernitana through suspension, Lazio coach Maurizio Sarri still has several men sidelined this weekend.

Defensive duo Alessio Romagnoli (calf) and Nicolo Casale (thigh) are unavailable due to injury, and another regular member of the hosts' starting XI, Italy winger Mattia Zaccagni, is set to miss out with a hip problem.

After making a match-winning impact in midweek, Ciro Immobile should be promoted from the bench: Lazio's skipper is only two goals shy of reaching 200 Serie A strikes and has previously scored 12 times against Cagliari in the top flight.

Meanwhile, Cagliari's Andrea Petagna has four league goals to his name versus Lazio, including his very first, back in August 2016. Once again, he vies with Eldor Shomurodov, Gianluca Lapadula and super-sub Leonardo Pavoletti for a place up front.

Zito Luvumbo and Inter loanee Gaetano Oristanio are both contenders to support the Rossoblu's central striker, but fellow forward Marco Mancosu could be sidelined by a knee injury.

Lazio possible starting lineup:
Provedel; Lazzari, Patric, Gila, Marusic; Guendouzi, Vecino, Alberto; Isaksen, Immobile, Anderson

Cagliari possible starting lineup:
Scuffet; Goldaniga, Dossena, Hatzidiakos; Zappa, Prati, Makoumbou, Augello; Viola; Luvumbo, Petagna

We say: Lazio 2-1 Cagliari

The pressure is on Lazio to produce, as they face promoted opponents and have plenty of catching up to do in Serie A. Last term's runners-up are also without half of their first-choice back four, but Cagliari can be caught out defensively and will surely suffer the same fate as Celtic.


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