Last weekend Inter Milan did enough to keep a spirited Napoli at arm’s length, while their rivals Milan picked full points and moved to the summit of the Serie A table, albeit with a slender one-point lead. Gameweek 26 of the Serie A commences on Friday night with Juventus taking on Torino.
Friday 18 February
6/10 Juventus | Draw 28/10 | Torino 42/10 (21:45)
Juventus picked up a valuable point in the dying embers of their game against Atalanta last weekend. The equalizer scored by Danilo on stoppage time meant the Old Lady leapfrogged Atalanta to the fourth spot with an extra two points, and now Torino presents a chance for them to stretch that gap. Ivan Juric’s men are winless in their last three games and last lost 2-1 to 18th-placed Venezia. Juventus should easily win this one.
Saturday 19 February
5/4 Sampdoria | Draw 49/10 | Empoli 21/10 (16:00)
Empoli will feel hard done in their last result against Cagliari, having lost a one-nil lead in the 84th minute. Both teams had equal chances in front of goal, registering five shots on target. Sampdoria struggled to create chances against an AC Milan team fighting for the Scudetto, only managing to get one shot on target. They are facing the second leakiest defence in the league in Empoli and should go into this one looking to score early. I’m backing both teams to score at 11/20 on this one.
17/20 Roma | Draw 28/10 | Hellas Verona 29/10 (19:00)
In perfect Roma style, Jose Mourinho’s men equalized in the dying seconds of their last fixture against Sassuolo. The result ensured they stayed just six points outside of the top four. There was nothing last minute about Verona’s latest victory though as they ran riot against Udinese, scoring two goals in each half to win 4-0. They are in the eighth position, only four points behind Roma. Both teams will score here but I’m backing a home team win.
7/1 Salernitana | Draw 42/10 | AC Milan 7/20 (21:45)
Salernitana has picked up two valuable points in their last two games, making it five points from their last five games. It seems low but when you consider their results this season, this is a decent run for a team stuck in 20th position. They host a Milan team that has only lost once in the last five on their way to claiming the top spot. I expect Milan to continue their good form in this game by smashing a few past Salernitana.
Sunday 20 February
18/10 Fiorentina | Draw 49/20 | Atalanta 29/20 (13:30)
Fiorentina looked out of energy in their 3-0 home loss to Lazio in gameweek 25. They’ve been on a mixed run of form since losing their top goal poacher, Dusan Vlahovic, to Juventus in January. The good news is they face an Atalanta team that has failed to win in their last four league games and they recently knocked them out of the Coppa Italia with a 3-2 scoreline this month. Atalanta did draw against Juventus though, and I see them coming with their never give up spirit in this game too. This could be the game where Atalanta turns their form around with a win.
31/20 Venezia | Draw 22/10 | Genoa 18/10 (16:00)
Two teams that sit inside the bottom three clash in this must-win fixture for either of them. Venezia’s bad run of form in recent weeks has seen them slip into the relegation zone and they will have to use this game in hand to climb over Cagliari. While winless in their last 22 games, Genoa has managed to draw their last three games, proving just how tough they can be. This won’t be an easy game for either so a draw is likely, but the home team win too.
1/4 Inter Milan | Draw 54/10 | Sassuolo 17/2 (19:00)
Both these teams face each other on the back of what will feel like points dropped in their last fixtures with both earning draws. Sassuolo will feel better prepared for this one though, having gone through the baptism of fire against Roma and managed to keep the score at 2-2, while Inter was lucky to get a point against a very strong Napoli performance. Having failed to win in their last two, and with the race for the Scudetto heating up, I fully expect Inter to win this one.
23/10 Udinese | Draw 5/2 | Lazio 11/10 (21:45)
Lazio showed great form to put three past 13th-placed Bologna. They now face 14th-placed Udinese and will go into this game expecting a similar result. Udinese got hammered by Verona 4-0 last weekend and now face the second-highest scoring team in Serie A with 52 from 25 games. Only Inter have scored more (55). I expect Lazio to score in both halves at 2/1.
Monday 21 February
48/10 Cagliari | Draw 7/2 | Napoli 5/10 (20:00)
The home team has been slowly trying to climb out of the relegation zone in recent weeks, picking up five points in their last three games, but they are still stuck in 17th position. Napoli, on the other hand, is dreaming of the complete opposite; winning the Scudetto. A draw against Inter last weekend could have been a win had they taken advantage of their first-half dominance. They won’t make such a mistake against Cagliari. I expect Napoli to come out victorious in this game.
8/10 Bologna | Draw 11/4 | Spezia 33/10 (22:00)
The Bologna faithful will be worried about how easily their team seemed to give up in their 3-0 loss to Lazio. That loss meant Bologna have now picked up one point in their last five games. They host a Spezia team that is one of the most in-form in the league with three straight wins in their last four games. What will give Bologna some hope is the fact that Spezia’s winning run was stopped by 20th-positioned Salernitana who managed to earn a point against them. Go for a draw.
TREBLE @ 34/10
Juventus Win 6/10
Roma Win 17/20
Napoli Win 5/10
