Andrea Belotti brace lifts Cagliari to gutsy 2-1 comeback at Lecce

Belotti brace turns tide as Cagliari sink Lecce 2-1 in Serie A

By Gabriel

Two moments from Andrea Belotti flipped a tense evening in Lecce on its head. Cagliari trailed after five minutes at the Via del Mare, settled their nerves, and rode their veteran striker’s cool finishing to a 2-1 comeback that felt as much about mentality as it was about goals.

The home side made the perfect start. With barely any time to breathe, Brazilian defender Tiago Gabriel struck in the fifth minute, and the stadium erupted. Lecce had energy, bite, and a fast tempo, pinning Cagliari back and forcing early mistakes. It looked like the kind of start that usually snowballs into a comfortable home win.

Cagliari didn’t fold. They slowed the game, cut out the rushed passes, and played higher up the pitch. Belotti took charge of the spaces between Lecce’s center-backs and full-backs, showing for the ball, buying fouls, and bringing midfielders into play. The shift mattered. In the 33rd minute, the visitors finally found their finish: Belotti read the play, peeled into a clever pocket, and tucked away the equalizer with the kind of balance and timing you expect from a striker who’s seen everything.

That goal changed the temperature. Lecce’s early adrenaline faded, and Cagliari’s bench looked calmer. The visitors started to win more second balls, their full-backs picked better moments to step in, and they controlled the rhythms that had gone against them in the opening spell.

The second half was cagey at first, more about field position than clean chances. But the decisive moment came in the 71st minute, when Cagliari earned a penalty. Belotti stepped up and treated it like a routine drill—no fuss, just placement and conviction. Falcone guessed, but the strike beat him. Two for Belotti, and the points heading toward Sardinia unless Lecce could mount a late surge.

They tried. Lecce pushed their line up, sent extra runners beyond the ball, and looked for quick combinations into the box. Crosses rained in, corners piled up, and Cagliari had to suffer a few scrambles in their area. Yet the visitors’ shape held, and their clearances had purpose rather than panic. Time ran out on the comeback attempt.

Context matters here. Cagliari arrived with seven points from their opening games; this win bumps them into double figures, a healthy early return that gives them breathing room and belief. Lecce, stuck on one point, needed a clean night at the back to match their bright start. They didn’t get it. One rash moment for the penalty and a lapse around the half-hour mark undid the spark of Tiago Gabriel’s opener.

There were details within the details. Lecce’s lineup—Falcone; Gallo, Tiago Gabriel, Gaspar, Kouassi; Sala, Ramadani, Coulibaly; Sottil, Stulic, Pierotti—offers pace on the flanks and steel in midfield. For stretches, that blend worked. Ramadani and Coulibaly broke up play and tried to launch quick transitions. Sottil’s direct running asked questions. But the last pass lacked bite, and once Cagliari compressed the gaps between their lines, the space for those surges vanished.

Belotti was the grown-up in the room. He didn’t just score; he simplified things for the players around him. When Cagliari needed to slow down, he drew contact and held it up. When they needed to spring forward, he spun into channels and dragged defenders out of position. This is what a battle-tested No. 9 brings to a mid-September league match that can feel like a coin flip.

Luca Zufferli kept a steady hand on the whistle. The referee allowed the game to flow while stamping out the cynical stuff early enough to stop it from spreading. In a match that had momentum swings and penalty-box tension, that balance helped keep tempers in check.

For Lecce, the sting is obvious. An early lead at home is everything you want; failing to bank even a point from there will frustrate the dressing room. The defensive line switched off once for the equalizer and then misjudged pressure in the area for the penalty. Those are fixable errors, but they cost points. Falcone made several sound interventions, yet he could do little about the spot-kick. Up the pitch, finishing and clarity in the final third remain the big asks.

Cagliari will take more than three points from this—there’s a blueprint inside the performance. Absorb the first punch, reset the tempo, feed the striker who thrives on movement and timing. They didn’t need fireworks to win; they needed discipline and a striker’s calm. They got both.

• Kickoff: 18:45 UTC at Via del Mare
• Referee: Luca Zufferli
• Goals: Tiago Gabriel 5' (Lecce); Belotti 33' (Cagliari), Belotti 71' pen (Cagliari)
• Lecce still seeking first win of the season; Cagliari continue a strong start

If you’re counting early-season indicators, this was one: Cagliari can grind out points away from home without playing at full tilt. That matters over nine months, especially when injuries and suspensions build. And Belotti, whose career has been defined by hard running and honest finishing, still has the knack for deciding tight games with a minimum of touches and a maximum of impact.

What it means for both sides

Cagliari’s haul climbs to 10 points, the kind of foundation that eases pressure and lifts training-ground mood. A result like this also stretches trust between lines—defenders believe the attack will repay their blocks and clearances; the attack trusts the back line to ride out rough patches. Those intangibles carry weight when the schedule thickens.

Lecce’s reality is tougher. One point from their opening fixtures leaves little margin for error, and the table doesn’t lie for long. The positive: they create pressure and start fast. The work-on: turn surges into sustained control, and tighten up in key moments—the first 10 minutes after scoring, and the final half-hour when legs get heavy and choices get slower.

There’s no panic button to hit in September, but there is urgency. The next matches demand cleaner passing sequences around the box and more composure in duels. If they keep the energy and tidy the details, the results should follow. If not, close games like this one will keep slipping away.

For Cagliari, the takeaway is simple: stick to the structure, trust the senior striker, and keep the margins clean. Nights like this build confidence, and confidence tends to travel well.