Claudio Ranieri leads Cagliari back to Serie A after last-gasp playoff winner

Claudio Ranieri led Cagliari to a dramatic Serie A return on Sunday, after Leonardo Pavoletti’s stoppage-time goal sealed victory over Bari in their playoff final.

Cagliari were under pressure at a foggy Stadio San Nicola where only a victory would see them promoted. The first leg in Sardinia on Thursday ended in a 1-1 draw; had Sunday night’s return game also ended in a draw, Bari would have gone up after finishing higher in the Serie B table (third to Cagliari’s fifth).

The visitors had struggled to create chances for most of the game but summoned a final push in the pouring rain, and Pavoletti volleyed home from close range in the 94th minute to spark scenes of jubilation. Cagliari return to the top flight after a one-year absence, joining Frosinone and Genoa, who both won automatic promotion.

Ranieri was seen crying on the field as he celebrated with his players. This is the veteran manager’s second spell at Cagliari – more than 30 years after his first, when he led them to back-to back promotions from the third tier to Serie A. The 71-year-old returned at the end of December, when the club were languishing in 14th place.

“Cagliari means everything to me,” Ranieri told Dazn afterwards. “33 years ago I became a coach here and this club allowed me to travel around Europe, I will always be grateful to this area and its people. I was afraid to come back, to tarnish the beautiful memories I had here.”

“I will always be grateful to those who brought me back to Sardinia,” Ranieri added. “And I want to think about our fans … all those who have supported us until the end in recent weeks. Having given joy to such a passionate group of supporters makes me so proud.”

Elsewhere, Hellas Verona beat Spezia 3-1 to retain their place in Serie A and send their opponents down in a relegation playoff. Both clubs finished the season level on points, so under new rules, a one-off decider was played at a neutral ground to decide who would join Cremonese and Sampdoria in dropping to the second tier.

Marco Davide Faraoni opened the scoring inside five minutes for Verona, finishing from Darko Lazovic’s deflected cross. Ethan Ampadu levelled for Spezia just 10 minutes later with a fine finish from 20 yards, the Chelsea loanee’s first senior goal.

Cyril Ngonge then emerged as Verona’s unlikely hero, firing a double before half-time after scoring only three goals all season. The Belgian forward slotted home in the 26th minute to restore Verona’s lead, then scored a superb solo goal 12 minutes later to put Marco Zaffaroni’s side in control.

Spezia had a chance to get back into the match in the 68th minute when Faraoni was shown a straight red card for clearing a goal-bound shot off the line with his hand. Lorenzo Montipò saved M’Bala Nzola’s weak penalty, though, and while Ampadu hit the bar late on, Verona held on to win and complete a dramatic relegation escape.