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CAGLIARI, ITALY – APRIL 11: Sebastiano Esposito of Cagliari (not seen) scored his goal 1-0 during the Serie A match between Cagliari Calcio and US Cremonese at Stadio Sant’Elia on April 11, 2026 in Cagliari, Italy. (Photo by Enrico Locci/Getty Images)
Sebastiano Esposito’s header proved enough to give Cagliari a huge push up the table in this relegation dogfight, leaving Cremonese in the bottom three.
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This was a pure battle to avoid relegation, with three points separating the Sardinians in 16th from their visitors in 17th place. Coming off four consecutive defeats, Cagliari missed Leonardo Pavoletti, Riyad Idrissi and Mattia Felici, but Alberto Dossena returned from suspension.
Marco Giampaolo had seen improvements since taking the Cremonese job, beating Parma and narrowly losing 2-1 to Bologna. Youssef Maleh sat out a ban, with Jamie Vardy, Morten Thorsby, Faris Moumbagna and Michele Collocolo injured, though Antonio Sanabria was now fit for the bench. Federico Baschirotto made his comeback and Sebastiano Luperto faced his former club.
See how it all unfolded on the Liveblog.
Marco Palestra’s strike was palmed out from under the bar in the opening minutes, but David Okereke wasted a golden opportunity when slipping and failing to make the most of the inspired Federico Bonazzoli slide-rule pass that sent him clear.
Okereke’s glancing header on a short corner also tested Elia Caprile and Cagliari lost Luca Mazzitelli to a muscular injury on the half-hour mark.
Sebastiano Esposito won it back in midfield and saw his counter-attack charged down by Sebastiano Luperto, while Bonazzoli drilled wide after the restart from a promising position.
Cagliari took the lead when substitute Ze Pedro made an immediate impact, sending his cross to the back post for Esposito to nod into the ground, the awkward bounce beating Emil Audero from a tricky angle.
It was so nearly 2-0 when Audero made a fantastic reaction save on Alessandro Deiola’s header from six yards, and there was a special moment as Andrea Belotti made his return after surgery for a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
Cagliari 1-0 Cremonese
Esposito 63 (Ca)
11-04-2026 14:00
MatchDay 32
Unipol Domus (Sardegna Arena)CAGUSC
Live1 – 0
Player statistic
| 4' | Filippo Terracciano |
| Michel Adopo | 62' |
| Sebastiano Esposito(Assist: Zé Pedro) | 63' |
CAG
USC
Starting lineups
1
Elia Caprile
Goalkeeper
33
Adam Obert
Defender
15
Juan Rodríguez
Defender
89′
2
Marco Palestra
Defender
26
Yerry Mina
Defender
14
Alessandro Deiola
Midfielder
10
Gianluca Gaetano
Midfielder
4
Luca Mazzitelli
Midfielder
31′
90
Michael Folorunsho
Midfielder
61′
29
Gennaro Borrelli
Attacker
61′
94
Sebastiano Esposito
Attacker
88′
1
Emil Audero
Goalkeeper
6
Federico Baschirotto
Defender
3
Giuseppe Pezzella
Defender
22
Romano Floriani Mussolini
Defender
68′
5
Sebastiano Luperto
Defender
33
Alberto Grassi
Midfielder
24
Filippo Terracciano
Midfielder
73′
27
Jari Vandeputte
Midfielder
68′
38
Warren Bondo
Midfielder
78′
77
David Okereke
Attacker
78′
90
Federico Bonazzoli
Attacker
Substitutes
28
Gabriele Zappa
Defender
24
Giuseppe Ciocci
Goalkeeper
25
Ibrahim Sulemana
Midfielder
9
Semih Kılıçsoy
Attacker
12
Alen Sherri
Goalkeeper
27
Joseph Liteta
Midfielder
37
Yael Trepy
Attacker
20
Agustín Albarracín
Midfielder
18
Othniel Raterink
Midfielder
8
Michel Adopo
Midfielder
31′
32
Zé Pedro
Defender
61′
31
Paul Mendy
Attacker
61′
19
Andrea Belotti
Attacker
88′
22
Alberto Dossena
Defender
89′
69
Lapo Nava
Goalkeeper
16
Marco Silvestri
Goalkeeper
23
Federico Ceccherini
Defender
15
Matteo Bianchetti
Defender
55
Francesco Folino
Defender
30
Mika Faye
Defender
21
Simone Lottici Tessadri
Midfielder
99
Antonio Sanabria
Attacker
68′
32
Martín Payero
Midfielder
68′
4
Tommaso Barbieri
Defender
73′
9
Milan Djuric
Attacker
78′
7
Alessio Zerbin
Attacker
78′
