Soccer Italy Serie A Prediction

Cremonese vs Salernitana - Match Preview

⚽ 3 June 2023 - 19:00 GMT +0

Despite having already had their relegation to Serie B confirmed last week, Cremonese’s spirit and determination couldn’t be faulted this past weekend as they fought back from a 2-0 half-time deficit away to Lazio before falling to a Sergej Milinković-Savić match-winner in the dying moments. It was a brutal reminder of their defensive struggles throughout the season and the 11th occasion of 21 Serie A (SA) defeats in which they conceded 3+ goals.

Result aside, manager Davide Ballardini described that clash as one of the “best matches” of his SA tenure (W4, D5, L10). Hoping to add to his pride, he’ll want to see his side sharpen up defensively and replicate recent home wins over fellow bottom-half clubs Spezia (2-0) and Empoli (1-0) after they were hit for ten goals in three consecutive losses to clubs ranked higher than that pair.

The future looks rosy for Salernitana, who will finish the season with fewer SA losses since the start of March (W3, D9, L1) than all other clubs if they avoid defeat here. More than ten points ahead of relegation following their stunning come-from-behind 3-2 win at home to Udinese last weekend, and they’ll be relieved not to be in the same position as they were last year when only Cagliari’s 0-0 draw at Venezia on the final day spared them from being dropped.

Having secured draws to the likes of AC Milan, Napoli and Roma under Portuguese caretaker manager Paulo Sousa, a trip to Cremonese should theoretically be an easier assignment, but their 2-1 loss against fellow bottom-half side Empoli last month may suggest otherwise. Sousa has yet to sign a new contract, but having declared in February that he “feels at home in Italy”, whilst more recently praising Salernitana’s “incredible fan base” and expressing his desire to “bring in new elements”, he appears to be an ideal fit for 2023/24.

📋 Players to watch: Daniel Ciofani didn’t mark his 100th SA game with a goal in the last round, but with strikes in five separate SA home fixtures this calendar year, the Cremonese marksman could still end his season positively. In last month’s loss to Empoli, Krzysztof Piątek recorded Salernitana’s opening goal for the third time this SA season, having also done so in the reverse fixture.

⚡ Hot stat: All but two of Salernitana’s last 12 SA matches saw both teams score on the day, including all six played away from home.