Sassuolo return to Serie A action on Sunday evening looking to build on claiming eighth spot in the standings last season.
As for Cagliari, they make the trip to the MAPEI Stadium having only finished in 14th position during the most recent campaign.
Match preview
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There was a time last season when Sassuolo were chasing down teams in the race for seventh spot, a scenario which emerged through eight matches without defeat.
However, having claimed four points from games against Lazio and Juventus in July, I Neroverdi failed to capitalise, losing three of their final four matches.
Despite eighth spot representing the second best finish in their history, there was a feeling of disappointment after finishing as many as 11 points behind Napoli.
Although consolidation will still be deemed acceptable for the season ahead, Roberto De Zerbi will have ambitions to retain their status as best of the rest behind the elite clubs.
They square off against opponents in Cagliari who have followed two managerial changes in 2020 with the appointment of Eusebio Di Francesco, who is motivated to right the wrongs of his brief spell at Sampdoria.
The Italian lasted just eight matches in all competitions, six of which ended in defeat in Serie A, but that should not detract from the fact that Cagliari have pulled off a coup to attract him to their club.
Successful spells at Sassuolo and Roma are still fresh in the memory, and there is every expectancy that the 51-year-old will be given the time to build something at the Sardegna Arena.
With teams from the top eight to come in his opening three matches, however, Di Francesco has not been provided with the ideal start to life with Gli Isolani.
Sassuolo form (pre-season friendlies): WWL
Cagliari form (pre-season friendlies): WD
Team News
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Jeremie Boga will miss Sassuolo's opening match of the season as he continues his recovery from injury.
The home side must also make do without Federico Peluso, who is serving a suspension carried over from the last campaign.
Meanwhile, Di Francesco is expected to hand Cagliari debuts to Razvan Marin and Riccardo Sottil.
Marin will take the place of Radja Nainggolan, who is back at parent club Inter Milan for the upcoming campaign.
Gaston Pereiro, Alberto Cerri and Luca Ceppitelli will all sit out this weekend's fixture through injury.
Sassuolo possible starting lineup:
Consigli; Muldur, Santos, Ferrari, Kyriakopoulos; Obiang, Locatelli; Berardi, Djuricic, Haraslin; Caputo
Cagliari possible starting lineup:
Cragno; Farago, Walukiewicz, Pisacane, Lykogiannis; Nandez, Marin, Rog; Sottil, Simeone, Pedro
We say: Sassuolo 2-1 Cagliari
Despite a poor end to last season, Sassuolo will be motivated to turn around their form over the coming weeks. While Cagliari should theoretically only improve after the appointment of Di Francesco, it may take some time for him to stamp his mark on his new side.
Top betting tip
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Darren Plant
