Fallen Serie A giants can respond in right way with the pressure on

Cagliari v Roma

5pm Saturday

It has been a Serie A campaign to forget for Roma, who are stuck down in seventh spot after reaching the Champions League semi-finals last term. But the Wolves can get back to winning ways at Cagliari to ease the growing pressure on coach Eusebio Di Francesco.

Di Francesco being under the pump is harsh - it was not his decision to sell important players such as Radja Nainggolan, Kevin Strootman and Alisson, while the continued absence of experienced stalwarts Daniele De Rossi and Edin Dzeko further hampers his work.

However, with sporting director Monchi pulling the transfer strings Roma will always sell for the right price, bringing in young players to replace those who have departed, and there is still plenty of talent in this squad such as Steven N'Zonzi, Javier Pastore, Aleksandar Kolarov, Kostas Manolas and Diego Perotti as well as a plethora of bright kids.

Patrik Schick, Justin Kluivert and Nicolo Zaniolo are the future for Roma but the ace in the pack is young Turkish talent Cengiz Under. He missed a sitter against Real Madrid in the Champions League and yet responded with a beauty in Sunday's 2-2 thriller against Inter.

One win in six is a little harsh on Roma as they have been keen to nail down a Champions League last-16 spot - which was accomplished - and the fixture list has been tough with domestic dates against Inter, Fiorentina and Napoli.

This is a step down in grade even though Cagliari are unbeaten at home this season. The Sardinians have only played one decent team and that was Milan when the 1-1 scoreline did not tell the whole story.

Milan dominated the shots (20-6), shots on target (6-2) and were comfortable 'winners' on expected goals.

Recommendation
Roma
2pts 20-23 Betfair

Bristol Rovers v Doncaster

3pm Saturday

Doncaster have had a free midweek, unlike Rovers who were in EFL Trophy action against Swansea's youngsters on Wednesday, and some of the Gas's recent results have been extremely concerning for gaffer Darrell Clarke.

The hosts were knocked out of the FA Cup by Barnet and the last league game saw Rovers suffer defeat at home to Gillingham, leaving them four points adrift of safety.

Clarke said after that poor loss: "We have sold so many goals out of the team, over £1.5m worth of strikers, replacing it with half a million pounds worth of strikers that aren’t doing it."

Rovers have scored 17 goals, 13 fewer than Doncaster, who have bounced back well from a recent dodgy spell to win four of their last five matches and gain a deserved draw at Barnsley.

Crucially, Donny have tightened up at the back, having conceded one goal in the last four, and in Liverpool loanee Herbie Kane they appear to have a player capable of performing at a higher level.

Recommendation
Doncaster draw no bet
1pt 4-5 general

Yeovil v Forest Green

3pm Saturday

The draw-no-bet market is always the way to go when stalemate specialists Forest Green are in action but if there is to be a winner of their trip to Huish Park it should be the visitors rather than Yeovil.

Rovers have lost only four times in Sky Bet League Two this season, and although a tally of nine draws is holding them back slightly, tenth spot is a solid start, and they are certainly superior to 19th-placed Yeovil.

Mark Cooper's men have lost five of their last seven in all competitions, although that run has included two FA Cup ties with League One Oxford and an EFL tie against an Arsenal side that featured players with Europa League experience.

Yeovil have won one of their last 11 in League Two and some of those performances have been concerning.

Recommendation
Forest Green draw no bet
1pt 8-11 general

Plays of the day

Banker
Portsmouth 4-6
League One leaders Pompey continue to make smooth progress in all competitions and their seven-match winning sequence can become eight against a Southend side struggling with an injury crisis.

Blowout
Sheff Wed 11-10
Wednesday's shot data has been poor for much of the season and now results are slowing down to match performances. They have one win in eight with six defeats so even Rotherham can avoid defeat.

Accumulator
Arsenal 2-7, Portsmouth 4-6, Bury 4-6, Colchester 8-13 BetBright

Both teams to score
Games at Peterborough 4-6, Valencia 13-18, Sassuolo 10-13 188Bet

Thought for the week

Earlier this week on Racingpost.com I wrote an article explaining why Ralph Hasenhuttl was a wise choice by Southampton to replace Mark Hughes at St Mary's.

Mark Langdon's Ralph Hasenhuttl profile

The one thing he won't be able to do is put the ball in the net for a Saints side who have lacked a goalscorer for yonks. But the Austrian is a clever tactician who has taken a step backwards in coming to Southampton, presumably to showcase his talents to bigger Premier League clubs in much the same way as Mauricio Pochettino and Ronald Koeman did on the south coast.

Pressing, energy and set-pieces were important aspects of a Hasenhuttl team in his Bundesliga days so here are three players who could really improve over the next few months.

Jannik Vestergaard Knows German football well from his time at Gladbach and the giant centre-back could be one to follow in the goalscorer markets once the dead-ball delivery improves.

James Ward-Prowse He is 24 now so can't be considered a youngster but he still has so much potential. It's been a failure of recent coaches not to get the best out of him at Saints but his brilliant set-piece delivery could be vital.

Michael Obafemi Hasenhuttl worked with young, raw speedy forwards at Leipzig so he could well trust the teenage Irish international.

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