Both sides have hoped for a much better start of the league campaign, meaning that they now have got to try and make amends for the poor results in the first two rounds. Significantly reinforced Cesena need a win in order to escape from the bottom three, whereas Lazio are also going through a rough patch with the Biancocelesti and are hoping three points from this clash will improve the atmosphere in the squad.

More potential than they are showing

Cesena had some problems to adapt to the demands of Serie A at the start of last season, after gaining promotion from the second division, but the team showed a lot of potential in the second part of the league campaign and deservedly avoided the drop. Ambitious club owners not only managed to keep hold of all star players apart from Emanuele Giaccherini, but they also significantly reinforced the squad with the likes of Adrian Mutu, Marco Rossi, Gianluca Comotto, Eder, Jorge Martinez and few others. Seeing that most of the players arrived just before or shortly after start of Serie A campaign, it was not surprising to see Cesena lose their opening games against Napoli and Catania, although I feel the need to point out that Cavalluci Marini were very dangerous up front in both games. Sitting in the bottom three after two straight defeats, the hosts have no choice but to attack their opponents from the off, which should guarantee us a very open game at Dino Manuzzi.

Defender Yohan Benalouane returns from suspension, whereas Nicola Ravaglia continues to deputize for injured keeper Francesco Antonioli.

Lazio looking for improvement

Having shown a lot of promise in the previous Serie A campaign, Lazio were expected to build on that result and mount a serious top 4 challenge this season. The bold predictions looked to be spot on after Djibril Cisse, Miroslav Klose, Lorik Cana, Federico Marchetti and Abdoulaye Konko arrived this summer, so nobody was surprised to see Lazio hammer Rabotnicki in the Europa League play-off round or witness their impressive performance at San Siro against reigning champions Milan. However, back to back slip ups against Vaslui and Genoa had a destabilizing effect on the squad, fueling speculations that coach Edy Reja will be sacked from the post. The experienced boss was given a vote of confidence by the club’s board, and that should help him get this team back on track, and there are no doubts that this Lazio side are more than capable of bringing all three points from Dino Manuzzi.

Defensive problems look set to continue with Stefan Radu and Lorik Cana still sidelined, whereas Stefano Mauri is also out.

Verdict

Both teams have got more potential than they are showing and will see this game as a must-win fixture. That should guarantee us an open game and plenty of chances at both ends, so I see both teams to score as the best pick here. Both Cesena and Lazio are very dangerous up front and the two keepers will be kept busy throughout the match.

Our prediction: Both teams to score

Odds: 1.91 (10/11)

Bookmaker: William Hill