The stakes on Saturday could hardly be higher for Piacenza and Reggina who are both desperately clinging to Serie A status.

Should Piacenza lose to their fellow strugglers from Reggio Calabria then they would be relegated, but victory would give them hope of an unlikely escape.

Reggina are fighting to maintain their status as the south of Italy's only Serie A club and badly need to recover after the home defeat by Roma last week.

They are locked in a race with Piacenza and Atalanta to avoid the two remaining relegation places.

Piacenza boss Gigi Cagni has no less than eight players who are just one booking away from a suspension although only Nicola Boselli will miss this clash because of a ban.

Cagni will pin his attacking hopes on 35-year-old veteran Dario Hubner, whose 24 goals made him Serie A's joint top scorer with David Trezeguet of Juventus last season, but has found goals harder to come by this term.

Hubner, a chain-smoking bar owner who had never played Serie A football before the age of 30, will be supported by Marco Marchionni and Ciro De Cesare up front while Matteo Guardalben remains as first-choice goalkeeper.

Cagni said: "I have read that the Calabrian fans (Reggina fans) are coming en masse to Piacenza so I hope that our supporters will turn out in numbers as well.

"It is the game of our lives - if we win we are back in the race and if we don't then it's goodbye to Serie A. I believe. I think we can do it."

Reggina boss Luigi De Canio will also go all out for three points with David Di Michele and Emiliano Bonazzoli supported by Francesco Cozza.

De Canio agreed with his counterpart's assessment, saying: "Piacenza are playing the game of their lives - it is their last chance of staying in the race.

"Cagni's team must believed in themselves but is is imperative for us to impose ourselves in a match that is going to be fiercely contested.

"The mental attitude of the teams will decide who wins it," said the former Udinese and Napoli boss.

Piacenza have never won in three previous meetings with Reggina.

Teams:
Piacenza (probable): Orlandoni; Cristante, Campagnaro, Mangone, Tosto; Marchionni, Di Francesco, Maresca, Baiocco; De Cesare, Hubner

Reggina (probable): Belardi; Jiranek, Vargas, Franceschini; Diana, Cozza, Paredes, Nakamura, Falsini; Di Michele, Bonazzoli