Cagliari starting XI (3-5-2): Caprile, Zappa (subbed for Prati), Rodriguez, Luperto, Palestra (subbed for Di Pardo), Adopo, Deiola, Folorunsho (subbed for Kilicsoy), Obert (subbed for Idrissi), Borrelli (subbed for Gaetano), Esposito

Bench: Ciocci, Radunovic, Pintus, Gaetano, Rog, Cavuoti, Liteta, Pavoletti, Luvumbo

Goals: Gaetano 82’

Roma starting XI (3-4-2-1): Svilar, Mancini, Ndicka, Hermoso, Celik, Cristante (subbed for El Aynaoui), Kone, Tsimikas (subbed for Ghilardi), Soulé (subbed for Ferguson), Pellegrini (subbed for Dybala), Baldanzi (subbed for Rensch)

Bench: Vasquez, Gollini, Ziolkowski, Pisilli, Bailey, Arena, El Shaarawy

Red card: Celik 52’

Cagliari set the tone at the Unipol Domus with energy and intent, while Roma—perhaps reeling from recent results—struggled to assert themselves.

For most of the first half, both sides exchanged possession carefully, but clear-cut chances were few and far between. Roma’s attacks lacked fluidity, and though they held a slight territorial edge, Cagliari defended compactly and stayed alert.

The turning point came early in the second half. In the 52nd minute, Roma fullback Zeki Çelik was shown a straight red card for a foul on Cagliari’s Michael Folorunsho, leaving the visitors with ten men at a precarious moment.

Down a man, Roma’s task became infinitely harder. Roma keeper Mile Svilar had to be at his best, pulling off a sharp save to deny a close-range attempt by defender Adam Obert, but the pressure kept mounting on the visitors.

Cagliari remained composed under pressure and finally broke through in the 82nd minute. From a corner, Gianluca Gaetano chested down the delivery and unleashes a half-volley from a tight angle that beat Svilar—a perfectly executed set-piece finish that sent the home crowd into delirium.

Roma tried to regroup and push for an equaliser, but the combination of being down to ten men and Cagliari’s disciplined defending kept hope at bay.

The win gives Cagliari a small buffer between them and the relegation zone, while Roma are now four points behind leaders Napoli.