Gustavo Varela double fires Monza to 4-0 win over Cagliari as Serie A tally hits six

Varela shines again as Monza crush Cagliari

Monza claimed a comfortable 4-0 victory over Cagliari, and once again the spotlight belonged to striker Gustavo Varela. The Portuguese grabbed a brace and an assist, taking his Serie A goal tally to six in as many games.

In all competitions, Varela has found the net eight times. That is the second-best personal tally of his career, and there is a chance it could become his best when the campaign ends.

His form has moved him into the upper reaches of the Serie A scoring charts. He sits second behind Antonio Raimondo, who recorded a hat-trick on Friday to go top.

An unexpected rise

Varela's emergence is all the more striking given his background. He had never played in Italy before joining. Benfica had loaned him to Gil Vicente last season, where he became a regular and scored seven times in the Portuguese top flight.

Monza signed him for just €2 million, a fee that represents excellent value. It also compares favourably with what other Italian clubs have got from much more expensive signings.

Juric finds a system that works

The result comes at a crucial time for Monza and head coach Ivan Juric. The Croatian's career has not progressed as he would have wanted over the last couple of seasons, but he appears to have found a structure that suits him.

Monza do not have a squad of superstars, but they have made a series of shrewd signings, including Varela, Eddy Kouadio, Jay Robinson, Ricardo Mangas, Saba Goglichidze and Inter's Ebenezer Akinsanmiro. Many of them are familiar faces who simply need a stable environment to deliver, and Juric is providing that. Varela, in particular, fits the man-for-man setup well.