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In a clash between teams from extreme ends of the table, 19th-placed Cagliari will welcome second-placed AC Milan to the Sardegna Arena in Serie A on Wednesday.
The hosts have struggled in their return to the top flight and are winless in their first five games of the season. They suffered a 2-0 away defeat at Atalanta on Saturday, which was their third loss of the season.
The visitors bounced back from a 5-1 loss to Inter Milan with a 1-0 home win over Verona on Saturday. Rafael Leão scored the only goal of the match in the eighth minute as Milan climbed to second place in the league standings.
On Saturday, they'll meet Lazio at home and will look to prepare for that clash with a win. The hosts, meanwhile, will play Fiorentina on Monday.
Cagliari vs AC Milan Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- The two sides have met 88 times in all competitions. As expected, the visitors have dominated proceedings against the hosts, with 51 wins to their name. The hosts have just nine wins against Milan and 28 games have ended in draws.
- The hosts have lost 45 Serie A games against the visitors, which is their worst record against any team in the competition.
- The visitors are unbeaten in their last 10 meetings against the hosts, recording eight wins and keeping seven clean sheets in that period.
- Cagliari have a better defensive record in five league games than the visitors, conceding one goal fewer (6), though AC Milan have outscored them 10-1 in that period.
- The visitors have won their last three away games against the hosts, keeping clean sheets in these wins as well.
Cagliari vs AC Milan Prediction
The Isolani have scored just one goal in five games thus far, with that goal coming in their away loss against Bologna. They have won just one of their last 10 Serie A home games and might struggle here.
Claudio Ranieri's men have come up second-best against the visitors recently, with just one win in the 21st century across all competitions. They suffered a 5-1 loss on aggregate in the 2021-22 Serie A campaign.
The Rossoneri bounced back well from their humiliating loss to Inter Milan with a narrow win last week and will look to continue that form in this match. Rade Krunic was injured against Verona and will not travel to Cagliari.
Mike Maignan and Theo Hernandez have trained and should be available for selection after being rested by Stefano Pioli on Saturday. Davide Calabria is still not fully match-fit. Pierre Kalulu is also unavailable due to injury.
Nonetheless, the visitors have enough squad depth to make up for the absentees. A few changes are expected in the starting XI due to their busy schedule.
Considering the hosts' goalscoring struggles and the visitors' impressive record against the hosts, we back Milan to record a comfortable win and the odds of a clean sheet also look good.
Prediction: Cagliari 0-2 AC Milan
Cagliari vs AC Milan Betting Tips
Tip 1: Result - AC Milan to win
Tip 2: Goals - Over/Under 2.5 Goals - Under 2.5 goals
Tip 3: At least a goal to be scored in the first half - Yes
Tip 4: Rafael Leão to score or assist any time - Yes
