Leonardo Pavoletti, Cagliari's striker, faces on Saturday evening the most difficult test of the season: San Siro, against an Inter side managed by Simone Inzaghi that is targeting a title surge and has never lost against the Sardinians in the last twelve Serie A clashes.
For Cagliari, the context makes the match almost existential. With 33 points from 33 matches — the product of 8 wins, 9 draws and 16 defeats — Davide Nicola's side occupies sixteenth place, the first position that guarantees direct survival. The margin is thin, and every point dropped against the big sides carries a specific weight in the final run-in.
Pavoletti, 37 years old, has appeared in 13 league matches this season, scoring 1 goal and providing 1 assist with an average rating of 6.40. Numbers that tell of a supporting role rather than a starring one: the centre-forward is not the focal point of Nicola's attacking system, but his experience — and his ability to hold up play and create space — remains a tactical reference point in moments of pressure. With only 33 goals scored across the entire season, Cagliari is one of the least prolific sides in Serie A, and Pavoletti carries a responsibility disproportionate to his actual playing time.
The AI Overall rating of 64/100 reflects a player still functional but with residual potential assessed at 35/100: the window is closing, and Nicola knows it. At San Siro, Pavoletti will not need to score to be decisive — he will simply need to keep upright a side that, historically, has never found the right path against Inter.
The coming weeks will tell whether Cagliari has enough to stay in Serie A. This match will tell whether Pavoletti still has enough to drag them through it.