Final score

7 April 2012 15:00

Cagliari
16' (2nd half) Pinilla
5' Astori
2 - 2
Inter
19' (2nd half) Cambiasso
6' Milito
Referee: Marco Guida / Linesmen: Grilli, Rosi / Fourth official: Romeo
Watch highlights
Minute Text commentary
45' With no injury time added, the first half between Cagliari and Inter ends 1-1
44' Chivu takes a free kick; Cambiasso takes a touch and looks for the goal but Agazzi saves
43' Yellow card shown to Conti for a foul on Forlan
40' Samuel closes down on Ekdal
38' Yellow card shown to Zarate for a foul on Pisano
37' A long-distance right-footer from Nainggolan is palmed away by a diving Castellazzi
36' Chivu takes a free kick on the left; Samuel leaps and his header goes just a hair wide
34' A run from Zanetti and a rebound from a cross see Agazzi block the attempt
29' Wide on the left Cossu takes on Zanetti and crosses to the far post, but Chivu arrives before Thiago Ribeiro to clear the danger
27' Cossu takes a corner and finds Pinilla, but his header is not on target
26' Yellow card shown to Stankovic for a foul on Thiago Ribeiro
25' A chance for Inter as Guarin crosses centrally to Cambiasso whose header is tipped over the crossbar by Agazzi
17' Yellow card shown to Pinilla for shoving Stankovic to the ground. A red card would have been the right decision from the referee
12' From the left Cossu crosses to the far post. Chivu, under pressure from Ekdal, shepherds the ball out
9' Conti with a low shot from outside the box, but his effort goes wide
6' GOAL INTER: MILITO scores by controlling and turning to shoot with his right. Stankovic and Zarate provide the build-up
5' GOAL CAGLIARI: ASTORI scores an acrobatic left-footed goal from a corner kick
2' Zarate shoots on the turn and Agazzi saves to give up a corner
1' Welcome to the Stadio Nereo Rocco in Trieste, which will host Cagliari v Inter, the Week 31 match of the 2011/12 Serie A season
1' Massimo Ficcadenti's Cagliari will take the opening kick-off
1' This is Guarin's first Inter match as a starter
1' Zanetti and Chivu line up as full-backs. The midfield consists of Guarin, Stankovic and Cambiasso. Up front is an attacking trio of Zarate, Milito and Forlan.
1' Julio Cesar and Lucio are suspended and Maicon and Sneijder are still out. Stramaccioni is fielding Ranocchia beside Samuel in front of Castellazzi
Minute Text commentary
48' The match finishes Cagliari 2-2 Inter. The Nerazzurri sit with 45 points
48' Obi crosses and finds Pazzini's head. Agazzi comes out and Ranocchia attempts a shot on the turn but fails to score
45' The referee signals for 3 minutes of injury time
41' Chivu finds Pazzini but the forward is offside
41' Substitution for Cagliari: Nene' comes on for Cossu
38' Substitution for Inter: Obi comes on for Stankovic
38' Substitution for Cagliari: Perico comes on for Ekdal
34' Zarate shoots on the turn and Agazzi goes airborne to make the save
33' On a run Ibarbo beats Zarate, Chivu and Ranocchia before the ball goes out for a goal kick
32' Substitution for Inter: Pazzini comes on for Forlan
31' Castellazzi saves a header from Conti
31' Ekdal's shot deflects off Samuel and goes out
30' Nainggolan manages to connect with a header from Cossu's cross but his effort goes wide
28' Zarate's right-footer goes off target
26' Substitution for Cagliari: Ibarbo comes on for Thiago Ribeiro
26' Yellow card shown to Forlan for hauling back Cossu
24' Agazzi manages to stop a long-distance effort from Forlan
19' GOAL INTER: CAMBIASSO scores. A cross from Forlan arrives at the feet of Cuchu and he puts it in the net with his left. 2-2
17' Yellow card shown to Cossu for protesting
16' Pinilla is sent off for his second yellow card
16' Yellow card show to Pinilla for his excessive celebration. It is his second one
16' GOAL CAGLIARI: PINILLA scores. Conti provides a cross that Pinilla heads past Castellazzi
16' Castellazzi saves from Thiago Ribeiro
12' A long-distance attempt from Pinilla goes just wide
11' Substitution for Inter: Poli comes on for Guarin
10' Stankovic earns a corner with a shot from distance that is deflected
8' Cossu sends a cross to Thiago Ribeiro but Guarin recovers the ball
1' The second half between Cagliari and Inter begins without changes
Zanetti
5.56
5.56
Stankovic
4.84
4.84
Cambiasso
6.27
6.27
Samuel
5.75
5.75
Chivu
3.91
3.91
Milito
6.73
6.73
Obi
5.47
5.47
Castellazzi
4.55
4.55
Ranocchia
4.38
4.38
Pazzini
4.55
4.55
Poli
5.61
5.61
Forlan
3.37
3.37
Zarate
4.97
4.97
Guarin
5.23
5.23
Average rating 5.09
3 shots on target 6
5 shots off target 3
11 fouls committed 11
4 corners 9
2 offsides 1
20:09 ball possession 25:25
Ficcadenti v Stramaccioni: first meeting

This is the first time Andrea Stramaccioni and Massimo Ficcadenti have met in opposite dugouts.

Ficcadenti v Inter: 3 defeats in 3 for the coach

This will be Massimo Ficcadenti's fourth competitive match against Inter as a coach. His teams have lost all three previous fixtures, conceding 6 goals over the 270 minutes.

Stramaccioni's first against the Sardinians

Andrea Stramaccioni is taking on the Rossoblu for the first time today.

209-minute shutout for Cagliari

Cagliari haven't conceded a goal in competitive home fixtures since 26 February, when they were beaten 1-2 by Lecce; Bertolacci scored the visitors' second in the 61st minute. Since then, in the remaining 29 minutes of that match plus the games won against Cesena (3-0) and Atalanta (2-0), Cagliari have set up an impenetrable fortress at home for 209 minutes.

Cagliari: kings of the goalless draw

The Sardinian side have been involved in more 0-0 draws (7) in Serie A 2011/12 than any other team.

Cagliari seeking first 3-match winning streak since 2009

Cagliari have won their two most recent home games: against Cesena (3-0) and Atalanta (2-0), both in Serie A. The last time they failed to take three points at home was on 26 February 2012, in Cagliari 1-2 Lecce (Serie A). Today the Sardinians have the chance to claim a third consecutive home victory since October-November 2009, when they went on a 4-match winning run in Serie A: 3-2 against Genoa, 3-0 against Atalanta, 2-0 against Sampdoria and 2-0 against Juventus.

Inter: most penalties against them in Serie A 2011/12 and in Nerazzurri history

With the 3 penalties awarded to Genoa on 1 April, Inter have now had 9 penalties given against them in 30 matches this season. This not only makes the Nerazzurri the side with the most penalties against them in the 2011/12 Serie A campaign - tied with Cesena and Genoa - it also equals the club's record since the start of a unified top flight in Italy in 1985/86 the Nerazzurri also had 9 penalties awarded against them.

Pazzini on fire in April - his highest-scoring month

For Giampaolo Pazzini, April (as well as March) is the month in which he has scored the most goals throughout his career: 13 of his 89 career goals to date.

No blanks for Inter in 27 matches against Cagliari

Inter have scored at least once in each of their last 27 competitive fixtures against Cagliari, racking up 54 goals in the process. The last time Inter failed to score against Cagliari was on 28 April 1996, a Serie A game in Sardinia that ended 0-0.

DA IMPLEMENTARE
wins(18) draws(18) defeats(7)

TRIESTE – It was blow for blow between Cagliari and Inter at the Stadio Nereo Rocco, which hosted a Serie A match for the first time in 19 years. The script was the same for both halves, with Milito responding to Astori (minutes 5 and 6) and Cambiasso answering Pinilla (minutes 61 and 64), who was then sent off for "excessive celebration". With the Sardinians down to 10 men Inter tried to take advantage. Zarate nearly added a third goal in the 79th minute, and later Pazzini and Ranocchia came close, but the ball would not go in and the Week 31 match finished 2-2.

FIRST HALF - With Julio Cesar and Lucio suspended, Stramaccioni relied on Castellazzi between the posts and Ranocchia and Samuel in central defence. Guarin was given his first start and up top there was an attacking trio of Zarate, Milito and Forlan. For Cagliari, Ficcadenti had Astori back and fielded Cossu behind Thiago Ribeiro and Pinilla.

Zarate only needed 70 seconds to make his presence felt with a lovely right-footer from distance that Agazzi put out for a corner. However, the Rossoblu were the first to go ahead; Astori and Ranocchia were tussling during a corner taken by Conti, but the defender managed to send an acrobatic overhead kick into the Inter goal to make it 1-0 on 5 minutes. It didn't go down well with Inter or Milito, who responded in his own way just one minute later when El Principe latched onto a ball sent to him from Zarate at the edge of the box before turning to send his shot past a helpless Agazzi and bring the Nerazzurri level.

Pinilla risked a red card on 17 minutes when he floored Stankovic with a slap, but Guida went easy on him and only showed a yellow. Eight minutes later Guarin had the fans on their feet when his cross from deep found a leaping Cambiasso in the box, but Agazzi went airborne to tip the Argentine's header over the crossbar. Cagliari pushed hard down the left flank through Cossu, and Zanetti and Chivu were both needed to contain his runs. On a corner from the Romanian, Samuel nearly put Inter in front with a powerful header that went just wide, while at the other end there was an immediate response from Cagliari when Nainggolan beat Cambiasso and Stankovic before his right-footer from distance was smothered by Castellazzi.

There was another slap on the pitch, this time from Conti on Forlan, that gave Inter a free kick from a dangerous position that however came to naught. After 45 minutes the teams went to the dressing rooms with the score at 1-1.

SECOND HALF – The second half got underway with the same twenty-two on the pitch. Cagliari dictated the tempo and so Stramaccioni made a change; after 55 minutes Poli came on for Guarin, but the opponents were still threatening more. Pinilla came close to scoring twice before finding the breakthrough in the 61st minute; his downward header from Conti's cross beat Castellazzi to make it 2-1, but his celebrations were more than allowed for and he received his marching orders with his second yellow card. Just as it happened in the first half, Cagliari's goal provoked an immediate response from Inter; in the 64th minute Forlan's cross found Cambiasso in the box and, between Canini and Ekdal, the Argentine scored to make it 2-2.

The final 15 minutes were all action. Castellazzi saved from Conti, but after the Cagliari midfielder had got free with a shove. Agazzi came off his line to stop Pazzini before Ibarbo made a bewitching run past Samuel and Ranocchia only to lose his balance on the goal line. Agazzi came up big on 79 minutes when he saved a lovely shot from Zarate at the far post. Then in injury time what seemed to be a certain goal for Inter went up in smoke when, from Obi's cross, Pazzini and then Ranocchia attempted to insert from point-blank range. No luck, however, and the game finished at 2-2, leaving the Nerazzurri with 45 points in the standings.

Cagliari 2-2 Inter (HT: 1-1)
Scorers: Astori 5, Milito 6, Pinilla 61, Cambiasso 64.

Cagliari: 1 Agazzi; 14 Pisano, 13 Astori, 21 Canini, 31 Agostini; 20 Ekdal (Perico 83), 5 Conti, 4 Nainggolan; 7 Cossu (Nenè 86); 19 Thiago Ribeiro (Ibarbo 71), 51 Pinilla.
Unused subs: 25 Avramov, 15 Bovi, 3 Ariaudo, 18 Nenè, 9 Larrivey.
Coach: Massimo Ficcadenti.

Inter: 12 Castellazzi; 4 Zanetti, 23 Ranocchia, 25 Samuel, 26 Chivu; 14 Guarin (Poli 56), 5 Stankovic (Obi 83), 19 Cambiasso; 28 Zarate, 22 Milito, 9 Forlan (Pazzini 77).
Unused subs: 21 Orlandoni, 2 Cordoba, 55 Nagatomo, 17 Palombo.
Coach: Andrea Stramaccioni.

Referee: Marco Guida (Torre Annunziata).
Booked: Pinilla 17, 61, Stankovic 26, Zarate 38, Conti 43. Cossu 63, Forlan 71.
Sent off: Pinilla 62.
Added time: 0 + 3 minutes.

starting lineups

Agazzi 12 Castellazzi
Pisano 4 Zanetti
Astori 23 Ranocchia
Canini 25 Samuel
Agostini 26 Chivu
Ekdal 14 Guarin
Conti 5 Stankovic
Nainggolan 19 Cambiasso
Cossu 28 Zarate
Thiago Ribeiro 22 Milito
Pinilla 9 Forlan

substitutes

Avramov 21 Orlandoni
Bovi 2 Cordoba
Perico 55 Nagatomo
Ariaudo 17 Palombo
Nenè 18 Poli
Larrivey 20 Obi
Ibarbo 7 Pazzini