Brazilian forward Thiago Ribeiro gave Cagliari the lead with a header in the 38th minute and Argentine forward Joaquin Larrivey doubled the lead in the 86th with a deflection off a shot from captain Daniele Conti. Japan forward Takayuki Morimoto pulled one back for Novara in the 88th with a lob from outside the area. Having opened with a 2-1 win at Roma last weekend, Cagliari has a full six points. Novara, which is back in the top division for the first time in 55 years, has one point. Later, both managers' jobs are on the line when Inter Milan hosted Roma, while on Sunday defending champion AC Milan visits Napoli and Juventus hopes to continue its strong start at Siena.