AS Roma vs Cagliari Prediction

AS Roma vs Cagliari prediction: tight night at the Olimpico

The AS Roma vs Cagliari prediction for Monday, February 9, 2026 (19:45 GMT) starts with one clear theme: Roma and Cagliari arrive with very different moods, but both have reasons to be careful. Roma sit 5th on 43 points and have hit a small dip, while Cagliari are 12th with 25 points and playing their best football of the season. Add an injury list long enough to need its own team bus, and this game starts to look more tactical than spectacular.

Match notes, context and what to watch

It’s at the Stadio Olimpico, where Roma have generally been reliable: only two defeats in their last 26 home Serie A games. Still, the recent run is not pretty—winless in three across competitions, including a 1-0 loss to Udinese and draws with AC Milan and Panathinaikos. Cagliari, under rookie coach Fabio Pisacane, bring a three-game winning streak, highlighted by a 4-0 win over Hellas Verona and a gritty 2-1 away victory at Fiorentina.

• Date & time: 2026-02-09, 19:45 GMT (20:45 local)
• Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Rome
• Market reality: Roma are priced as clear favorites in the betting odds

Tactics and team news: pressing vs patience

Gian Piero Gasperini keeps pushing his familiar 3-4-2-1 ideas at Roma: aggressive press, quick vertical play, and a lot of work from the back three. The problem is the “final-third quality” he mentioned pre-match—Roma are short of fit attackers. Artem Dovbyk is out until April after surgery, Evan Ferguson has an ankle issue, and Manu Koné is sidelined with a hamstring strain. Paulo Dybala (knee/flu) and Stephan El Shaarawy (Achilles) face late checks, while Mario Hermoso is also a doubt.

That’s why January signings matter. Donyell Malen is expected to start and has already become a focal point, with Bryan Zaragoza also in line to play. Expect Malen to operate as the main reference point, with Matías Soulé and Lorenzo Pellegrini trying to supply the detail.

Cagliari are missing firepower too: Andrea Belotti (ACL) and Mattia Felici (cruciate) are out long-term, while Michael Folorunsho is expected back mid-February. The good news is Yerry Mina should return to marshal the defense. Pisacane’s flexibility—3-5-2 one week, 4-2-3-1 the next—fits his “sacrifice and suffer” approach, with Sebastiano Esposito and Semih Kılıçsoy set up to counter.

Head to head and the revenge angle

This head to head has already had spice: Cagliari beat Roma 1-0 in Sardinia in December 2025, and Roma will want to avoid a season sweep. The last recorded H2H meeting we have (2025-03-16) also finished 1-0 to Roma, which hints at a familiar script: narrow margins, not many goals.

AS Roma vs Cagliari prediction: NerdyTips betting picks

For sports betting, the 1X2 prices show the market leaning heavily to the hosts: Home 1.5, Draw 4.25, Away 9.0. That makes sense when you compare squad resources—Roma’s total squad value is €410.50m versus Cagliari’s €138.20m—but form and injuries narrow the gap in practice.

• Best tip: Under 3.5 goals (odds 1.32), trust 6.4/10
• Best under/over: Under 3.5 goals (odds 1.32), trust 6.5/10
• 1X2 AI pick: Roma to win (1) at odds 1.5, trust 5.3/10
• Predicted score: 1-0 Roma
• Half-time: 0-0

Why the strong lean to under 3.5? Roma’s injury crisis pushes them toward control rather than chaos, and Cagliari’s best path is to stay compact and steal moments. Even Roma’s “highlanders” in defense can’t score goals, sadly. Yes, Cagliari shocked Juventus 1-0 on 2026-01-17 at 7.0 odds, and Roma once grabbed a wild 2-2 at Leverkusen at 5.84, but this setup looks more like a chess match than a track meet.

Final AS Roma vs Cagliari prediction: Roma edge it, but keep your main focus on under 3.5 goals as the cleanest angle for betting odds and game flow.