- League finish: Carrarese finished 12th in the Serie B 2025-26 standings with 44 points, 2 fewer than 9th-placed Mantova.
- Head-to-head: Mantova are unbeaten in 3 competitive meetings with Carrarese, with Mantova taking 1 win and 2 draws.
- Pre-season: Carrarese lost 2-0 in a friendly against Napoli in pre-season.
Sides to share the spoils in Serie B opener
Match preview
Saturday's Serie B 2026-2027 season opener at Stadio Dei Marmi should be a close one with Carrarese starting as favorites, but Mantova in better shape and looking the more lively of the two.
Carrarese background
Carrarese finished just below the visitors in Serie B 2025-26, with Antonio Nicola Calabro's well-organized, compact side earning a total of 44 points in the 38-game campaign. Gli Azzurri have had a busy summer of friendlies with the club's primary threat Fabio Abiuso, who topped their charts in 2025-26, the main man up front.
Carrarese tactical shape
Calabro has been able to field a pretty balanced team over the past couple of seasons and, although there is some dynamism on the flanks and in transition, Carrarese are a pretty structured side in their 3-5-2 shape.
Key players
- Nicolò Schiavi brings a bit of creativity from deep, while Mattia Finotto brings some Serie A experience and a useful end-product.
- Tommaso Rubino has also had a good pre-season and has given Carrarese a spark off the bench when they have looked to pinch the win.
Mantova have more momentum and could take the points
Mantova have had a more positive summer in comparison with a couple of pre-season wins and a 2-1 test defeat to Atalanta. Last Saturday's 0-0 with Alcione was a game they did not take the victory in, but it was a clean sheet in a game that could have gone either way.
Francesco Modesto has tried to get a little more tempo and sharpness to his side in the three-at-the-back system since taking over in December 2025 and they have certainly looked a little more aggressive. They can win the ball high in possession with their three-at-the-back system and have been able to push players out wide at times, which can be lethal when the press is on.
Simone Trimboli brings control and consistency in the middle of the park, while Alessio Castellini has been one of their most reliable performers. Piccolo Brasile finished 2025-26 with a few more points than Carrarese and the same quality in the squad with Mancuso having led their scoring charts with 10 last term.
He will again be the reference man in attack, but there has been more bite in Mantova's game with Gliozzi contributing a couple of goals in their warm-up wins, so we are going to take the hosts to just have a bit more about them in this Serie B opening game.
Tight game more likely than shootout
Carrarese come into the match at 2.32 with Mantova the underdogs at 2.98, so we are giving the hosts the edge on the draw with the result sitting at 3.25. There is no point trying to work out the winner when this game is likely to be a chess match in midfield with the home side wanting to stay solid and the away side hoping to play at a higher tempo.
Both teams to score at 1.7 looks like a fair reflection of the odds setters' expectation for this game to be a tight, but open contest with chances at both ends. We are taking the home advantage to be the main factor and going for under 2.5 goals at 1.83, matching the recent low-scoring H2H trend.
The last 3 meetings between the clubs have seen a 1-1 draw, a 2-1 Mantova win and a 0-0 draw, which is enough to put us off the 2-1 Mantova exact score option at 11/1 and into the direction of a draw.
