Match Report: Cagliari V AS Roma – 7th December 2025
On 8 December 2025 by Gillyowl
Cagliari 1 – 0 AS Roma
Roma were edged out 1-0 by Cagliari in a frustrating night at the Unipol Domus, with Gaetano’s 83rd-minute goal proving decisive in a match where the Giallorossi were made to pay dearly for a single lapse despite long spells of control and resilience.
Pisacane stuck with Rodriguez after his display in Naples, pairing him with Luperto, while Zappa and Obert operated as full-backs. Deiola anchored midfield alongside Adopo and Folorunsho, with Palestra supporting Borrelli and Esposito.
Cagliari started energetically, enjoying the early momentum of the home crowd. In the 6th minute, Obert’s low cross found Adopo, whose effort was blocked for a corner. Two minutes later, Borrelli thought he’d broken through, only for Evan Ndicka to intervene superbly with a decisive defensive action that underlined Roma’s alertness at the back.
The hosts continued to probe, with Borrelli sending an effort wide in the 12th minute and Palestra testing Svilar from range four minutes later. Roma’s goalkeeper was increasingly called into action, most notably in the 24th minute when he reacted sharply to deny Folorunsho’s header, and again on 27 minutes when Esposito’s counterattack ended with another Svilar save.
Despite Cagliari’s intensity, Roma gradually asserted themselves, pinning the Rossoblu back for long stretches. The Giallorossi pressure peaked around the half-hour mark, when Caprile was forced into a series of interventions during a prolonged spell inside the Cagliari box. Roma won crosses and corners in succession, but the breakthrough refused to come. At the interval, it remained 0-0.
The second half followed a similar pattern. In the 49th minute, Folorunsho went down after a challenge from Celik, with VAR reviewing the incident amid strong protests, but Roma survived the scare. Svilar once again proved crucial in the 59th minute, producing a top-class save to deny Obert after a well-worked move. At the other end, Rodriguez and Cristante both had half-chances, though neither troubled the scoreline.
Roma responded with intent, making a triple change on 62 minutes as Ferguson, Dybala, and El Aynaoui replaced Cristante, Pellegrini, and Soulé, injecting quality and urgency into the side. The momentum began to swing, but Svilar was again forced into action in the 68th minute, denying Folorunsho at full stretch. Esposito then fired over from distance shortly after.
As the match opened up, substitutions followed on both sides. Palestra struck the post in the 76th minute with a moment of individual brilliance, while controversy flared three minutes later when the same player went down in the box under a challenge from Ghilardi — waved away by the referee to Roma’s visible disbelief. Tempers flared, with Folorunsho and Hermoso booked after a brief scuffle.
Against the run of Roma’s growing pressure, the decisive moment arrived in the 83rd minute. From an Esposito corner, Gaetano controlled at the far post and finished clinically, punishing Roma for the one moment they failed to clear their lines. The midfielder was booked for his shirt-removing celebration as the home crowd erupted.
Roma pushed in the closing minutes, but the damage was done. Despite discipline, strong goalkeeping from Svilar, and late attacking intent, the Giallorossi left Sardinia empty-handed — a harsh outcome decided by fine margins rather than dominance.
The Giallorossi fans must remember that this is only the 5th loss of the season in Serie A and there is still a long way to go to the end of the season.
