"Cagliari is a unique place, people are realizing its true value and I'm happy to be able to spread this message." Leonardo Pavoletti now feels like an acquired Sardinian. The captain of Cagliari, a rossoblù since 2017, was born in Livorno but the capital is now his second home: "I'm becoming more and more Sardinian," he said in an interview with the official channel of the Lega Serie A. "Being compared to Gigi Riva is nice, but we must always be good at measuring our words: we are both strikers, but not at exactly the same levels. But the love for Cagliari and the principles that we have recognized in this city unite us."
Pavoletti has been playing for Cagliari for eight years: 208 appearances to date with 50 goals, waiting for Saturday's match against Atalanta . "The first year wasn't all roses and flowers, despite being saved in the end I wasn't able to really enter the hearts of the Sardinians on and off the pitch", he says. "Cagliari studied me, in my opinion: they wanted to understand what kind of man I was, then once I accepted it there, true love was born. They gave me their all and I can't do otherwise: every day is a life that's too beautiful, I appreciate it a lot as do several of my teammates and exes ".
A year ago the transition from Claudio Ranieri to Davide Nicola: «Ranieri was fantastic and without him we would not have returned to where we are today», says Pavoletti. «Few could take his scepter, also for credibility with the fans and us players, but Nicola is succeeding. He has very simple values: he looks you in the face and tells you what he thinks ». An appreciation despite the striker and captain not being a regular starter: «He always keeps an eye on me, a lot of attention also to the minutes he makes me play on the pitch. We have never discussed this».
During his years at Cagliari, Pavoletti had to overcome some serious injuries and the relegation in 2022. « When I returned from the second cruciate ligament, I had been out for a year and I found myself, due to the hierarchy, the third striker: it was the only moment in which I thought, in January four years ago, of changing teams but only to show that I could still play in Serie A or B ». Then the move from Di Francesco to Semplici: « A new coach arrived who put me at the center of the project, I scored a few goals and there was a happy ending ».
Pavoletti stayed and, in June 2023, scored the decisive goal in Bari for promotion. One of the many very important and decisive ones, often in the final minutes: «It's the whole team that brings me there, I sweated it out until the end. I was even angry at the end of the match, even though we had won: I came on in the 87th minute, I risked not being able to bring Cagliari back to Serie A. I only played five minutes, but I'm happy I succeeded».
On November 26, Pavoletti turned 36. Last season he signed a contract until June 30, 2026 and it should be his last in his career: « This is the perspective. As long as I feel the fire of wanting to come in and be a protagonist I will continue . I still have some goals, like winning the prize that is given at the end of each match ». With Cagliari's salvation in his sights: « I would like it to be serene, not always in the final days. But we are used to it and we will try in every way, we have good players and even those who have recently arrived like Caprile have settled in well ».