Juventus continued their march towards a fourth straight Serie A title with a 2-0 win over Empoli on Saturday. Roma strengthened their grip on second place thanks to a 1-0 win over Napoli which puts nine points between the two sides in the standings. However, Lazio kept in touching distance of Roma though, with a 3-1 win at 10-man Cagliari. Elsewhere, substitute Davide Succi equalised nine minutes from time as Cesena hit back from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 at Hellas Verona. Inter Milan left the San Siro to a deafening chorus of boos from the home fans after they were held to a 1-1 draw by rock-bottom Parma on Saturday. More action to follow this weekend with more money to be made as Napoli play host to Fiorentina in arguably the Serie A match of the weekend.
Saturday
Genoa 1/1 | Draw 5/2 | Cagliari 27/10
Genoa avoided a third straight defeat as they claimed a 1-1 draw against Udinese on their ground. They will be looking to go one better and claim maximum points against Cagliari who have been in terrible form. Cagliari fell to yet another defeat, going down 3-1 at home against the in-form Lazio. They have now lost four times in the last five outings at the Sant’ Elia stadium and are 19th in the standings, five points adrift of safety. Genoa have won five of the last seven home meetings against their opponents and are tipped to build on that.
Parma 10/1 | Draw 42/10 | Juventus 3/10
Although Parma’s relegation to Serie B is as good as done, the money troubled club is still giving their all as they played to a 1-1 draw at Inter Milan at the weekend. Parma have a game in hand to play on home soil against Udinese at the time of writing but it makes little difference this weekend as they take on table toppers Juventus. A fourth straight Serie A title is Juventus’ for the taking after they beat Empoli 2-0 on Saturday night to establish a 14-point advantage at the top of the table with nine games of the season remaining. Juve have lost just once in the Serie A, winning 21 times in 29 matches, scoring an impressive 57 goals; that’s more than double the amount that Parma have scored. The away win looks a sure bet but rather take Juventus to win halftime-fulltime at 8/10.
Hellas Verona 9/4 | Draw 24/10 | Inter Milan 12/10
Hellas Verona were forced to settle for a share of the spoils as Cesena came from three goals down with 28 minutes to play, to draw 3-3. Verona have one of the worst defensive records in the league, conceding 51 goals in 29 games. Inter Milan are next up; winless in their last five matches after a disappointing 1-1 draw at home against bankrupt, relegation bound Parma. Inter have struggled to consistency this term and as a result have been difficult to predict. However, their record against Verona is tremendous, winning 10 of the last 12 meetings. Both Teams To Score + Inter to get the victory will give you a valuable 3/1.
Sunday
Cesena 31/10 | Draw 2/1 | Chievo 18/10
Cesena completed an incredible 11 minute comeback from 3-0 down to draw 3-3 at Hellas Verona. It showed the bravery and guts of a relegation threatened club looking to fight for another season in Italy’s top flight. Chievo went down 1-0 on Saturday when they travelled to Sassuolo looking for a third consecutive win. A 23rd minute penalty gave them their 13th loss of the season. They have fared better on their travels than they have on home soil, winning five of their 14 games on the road, whilst only managing three wins from 15 home games. A lack of goals from both teams has seen the respective clubs compete at the bottom of the table. The draw looks most likely.
Atalanta 12/10 | Draw 9/4 | Sassuolo 24/10
Winless in their last eight games, Atalanta slipped to a 2-1 defeat at home against Torino on Saturday afternoon. Atalanta have managed just three wins from 14 home games, scoring 15 goals. Sassuolo’s top scorer Domenico Berardi struck from the penalty spot to hand his 10 man team a 1-0 home triumph over Chievo on Saturday. The Italy Under-21 international forward earned and converted the spot-kick in the 23rd minute to clinch three vital points for Sassuolo in their battle to maintain their Serie A status. Sassuolo were in the midst of a poor run which had seen them lose five of their last six league games and they will be hoping to build on that hard fought victory over Chievo. The last six meetings between the sides has seen under 2.5 goals and that trend is tipped to follow at 13/20.
Lazio 5/10 | Draw 32/10 | Empoli 11/2
Lazio kept the heat on second-place Roma by clinching a seventh consecutive Serie A success, 3-1 at 10-man Cagliari. Goals from Miroslav Klose; Lucas Biglia and Marco Parolo keep the Biancocelesti on track for a Champions League place amongst Europe’s elite, and just one point off neighbours Roma with nine matches to play, things are looking up for Lazio. Empoli were unbeaten in their last eight matches prior to their 2-0 defeat away to champions Juventus. However, their away form this season has been awful, registering just one victory from 14 matches. Lazio are tipped confidently.
Napoli 1/1 | Draw 5/2 | Fiorentina 11/4
Napoli extended their winless run to five matches after falling to a 1-0 defeat at Roma. They will return to their home ground were they haven’t been as good as they usually are. Fiorentina climbed above Sampdoria into fourth place in Serie A thanks to a 2-0 win over the Blucerchiati. Alessandro Diamanti and Mohamed Salah’s quick-fire goals in the second half earned Vincenzo Montella’s men all three points, taking them also above Napoli in the standings, still six points /behind third-placed Lazio. Back Fiorentina on the double chance to win/draw at 7/10.
Turin 2/1 | Draw 21/10 | Roma 29/20
Torino maintained their push for European football with a 2-1 victory at Serie A strugglers Atalanta on Saturday. Two wins in their last two matches, Turin will be hoping to take points off Roma who have also been impressive, winning their last two games. Roma ended their four-month winless streak at home with a 1-0 victory over Napoli in Serie A on Saturday, in a key match for Champions League places. Roma had gone seven matches since their last home win – a 4-2 victory over Inter Milan on 30 November. They will have to give one final push with nine games remaining as City rivals Lazio remain just one point off them. Roma have won eight of the last nine meetings against Turin and are tipped to add to that.
Udinese 5/4 | Draw 22/10 | Palermo 23/10
At the time of writing, Udinese have drawn their last three matches after a 1-1 draw away to Genoa. Palermo suffered a third consecutive defeat, going down 2-1 when they played host to AC Milan at the weekend. They have been dreadful on the road as their winless run stretches back to nine matches. Udinese are unbeaten against Palermo in the last eight meetings and with home advantage on their side, a win looks even more likely.
AC Milan 19/20 | Draw 24/10 | Sampdoria 29/10
A piece of Jeremy Menez magic saw AC Milan snatch a late 2-1 win over Palermo at San Siro on Saturday afternoon. AC Milan had not won back-to-back league games since October last year but now they will be looking to make it three out of three. Sampdoria lost 2-0 away to Fiorentina last time out. Prior to that defeat, Sampdoria had won their last four matches on the spin. However, Milan currently have the moment and are tipped to push on and snatch the victory.
Written by Vuvuzela
Vuvu’s Serie A Picks
Genoa WIN 1/1
Juventus HT-FT DOUBLE 8/10
Inter Milan WIN+BTTS3/1
Cesena DRAW 2/1
Atalanta UNDER 2.5 GOALS 13/20
Lazio WIN 5/10
Fiorentina WIN/DRAW 7/10
Roma WIN29/20
Udinese WIN 5/4
AC Milan WIN 19/20