Preview: Lecce vs. Cremonese - prediction, team news, lineups

Lecce welcome Cremonese to Stadio Via del Mare in Sunday’s Serie A clash that could have ramifications for both teams’ survival prospects.

Separated by one place in the table ahead of gameweek 28, the hosts could leapfrog their opponents with a win this weekend, although that outcome is contingent on the league’s lowest scorers finding attacking solutions against their relegation rivals.

Match preview

Lecce’s victories over Udinese and Cagliari last month handed Eusebio Di Francesco’s men a lifeline in the battle for Serie A survival, ending an eight-match wait for maximum points.

The optimism drawn from clinching back-to-back wins for the first time this season has since been dampened by losing the following two games, although the 18th-placed side are level on points with their Lombardy visitors ahead of this weekend’s relegation six-pointer.

Indeed, observant Lecce supporters will point out that the team were unlikely to claim anything from matches against league-leading Inter Milan and fifth-placed Como, and the Salentini will welcome the chance to face a side of similar quality and resources this weekend.

Having shown that they still have some fight in them with February’s victories, the league’s lowest scorers will hope to put recent defeats against superior sides behind them and climb out of the bottom three after the 28th round.

While Lupi have failed to score in four of their last six league matches in Apulia, facing a Cremonese side in even worse shape offers an opportunity to escape the relegation zone.

That aspiration is feasible, considering the visitors’ extended wait for a win in Serie A since securing back-to-back triumphs at the back end of 2025.

When Davide Nicola’s men claimed 3-1 and 2-1 victories over Bologna in Emilia-Romagna and Lecce in the reverse fixture in Lombardy to end a three-match losing run, many expected those results to provide a much-needed fillip for the league returnees.

Instead, they have now gone 13 top-flight matches without success, losing nine during that run to leave them in a precarious position.

Nicola’s team are one of three Serie A sides yet to taste victory in 2026, having collected a joint-low three points with bottom-placed Hellas Verona, while their low-scoring nature does little to help their cause.

No team in the top flight has netted fewer than La Cremo’s three goals – a tally four fewer than Lecce and Verona, both of whom have seven apiece.

However, Lecce have conceded four fewer than Cremonese, whose -15 goal difference in 2026 is the second-worst in the division since the turn of the year, underlining the away side’s struggles ahead of a visit to Apulia, where they will hope to avoid a sixth straight defeat on their travels.

Lecce Serie A form:

Cremonese Serie A form:

Team News

Having scored in the wins over Udinese and Cagliari, January signing Omri Gandelman’s status will be assessed after he went off with an apparent issue in the loss to Como.

While the Salentini will also assess Medon Berisha, Francesco Camarda and Kialonda Gaspar are expected to miss out for Di Francesco’s side.

With Gandelman likely to be absent, Lecce will rely on Lameck Banda — three goals, three assists — for productivity in the attacking third, with the Zambian scoring in the win over Udinese and providing an assist in last week’s defeat to Como.

Cremonese’s search for match-winning quality continues this weekend, even if they will look to Federico Bonazzoli and Jamie Vardy for inspiration.

However, Bonazzoli has not scored in 13 games since netting a penalty in the reverse fixture against Lecce in December, while Vardy has neither scored nor assisted since doing both in January’s 2-2 draw with Cagliari.

While Nicola will hope for a turnaround in fortunes for his leading forwards, the Grigiorossi boss must do without the suspended Filippo Terracciano and injured Federico Baschirotto, with the club’s medical team set to assess Michele Collocolo, Martin Payero and Faris Moumbagna.

Lecce possible starting lineup:

Falcone; Veiga, Gabriel, Siebert, Gallo; Coulibaly, Ramadani, Banda; Pierotti, Cheddira, Sottil

Cremonese possible starting lineup:

Audero; Folino, Cianchetti, Luperto; Zerbin, Thorsby, Maleh, Vandeputte, Pezzella; Vardy, Bonazzoli

We say: Lecce 1-0 Cremonese

With both teams struggling for results, Lecce’s recent victories at least highlight their potential to claim maximum points if everything comes together.

Given Cremonese’s issues in front of goal, they are likely to be edged out by the Salentini in Apulia, and their 13-match winless streak could stretch to 14 this weekend, potentially pushing them into the bottom three.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.