Round 18 saw the Serie A table still being led by Juventus as Roma missed out on the chance to go equal on points with La Vecchia Signora.
The weekend started off with a boring goalless draw between Empoli and Inter, before Gonzalo Higuain’s impressive form continued as he netted the winner for Napoli away to Lazio. Meanwhile, an exciting last few minutes in Cesena saw Torino claim all three points, Genoa and Sassuolo shared the points in a six-goal encounter and a last minute penalty rescued a draw for Cagliari away to Udinese.
The formation for the Team of The Week is a 3-4-3 with Sampdoria dominating the midfield and young talent providing the attack.
Have we missed any players out? Tell us what you think in the comments below.
Ciprian Tatarusanu – Fiorentina
It was only the third Serie A start for the 28-year-old Romanian but he looked confident and make some fantastic stops to make sure his team didn’t lose their lead. The list of successful blocks includes a wonderful double save to deny Chievo attackers Alberto Paloschi and Sergio Pellissier from scoring, as well as keeping calm and not making any foolish mistakes when being presented with simple jobs.
Elseid Hysaj – Empoli
Defence was a key part in the Azzurri’s dull goalless draw with Inter, and the 20-year-old certainly made sure the away side didn’t claim a victory. The Albanian was a solid wall on the right wing to stop several Inter attacks, and he almost came close to scoring on a couple of occasions too. The Nerazzurri looked dangerous at times but Hysaj made sure Empoli kept a clean sheet.
Yohan Benalouane – Atalanta
Atalanta played an excellent game at the Stadio Guiseppe Meazza to claim all three points, but their opponents AC Milan weren’t without their chances. However, 27-year-old Benalouane kept La Dea’s clean sheet intact by being a solid block in defence to stop charges from the Rossoneri’s attackers. The Tunisian also almost scored for himself due to his attacking play with the ball, and started many of his side’s dangerous attacks after moving up the pitch several times.
Ivan Piris – Udinese
Despite Udinese conceding twice, it would be harsh to say Piris was at fault for both Cagliari goals because the 25-year-old Paraguayan did what he had to do well and sufficiently. The Bianconeri could have had a third or fourth goal if there had been a stronger final touch on many of Piris’ dangerous balls into the box.
Paul Pogba – Juventus
It is difficult to not use the whole Juventus squad as the Team of the Week, but their best player against Hellas Verona was Paul Pogba. The French starlet’s skillful dribbles provided opportunities for Juventus goals. The 21-year-old also got on the score sheet a couple of minutes into the match, and had a wonderful curling shot well saved to deny him doubling his tally. It is no wonder Pogba is heavily linked with a move away from the Juventus Stadium because his performances as of late have been second to none.
Alexander Farnerud – Torino
The Swede’s skill and intelligence while in possession meant Il Toro could pile the pressure onto their opponents. Farnerud was also the assist for two Torino goals in three minutes, and the club’s victory would have been less likely if the 30-year-old was not on the field.
Duncan – Sampdoria
The young Ghanaian had good first touches and was very attack minded. He provided a successful dribble which led to Sampdoria’s second goal, and the 21-year-old almost scored on a few occasions himself. Duncan’s pace meant opponents Chievo could never relax during the 90 minutes.
Roberto Soriano – Sampdoria
After the recent departure of Manolo Gabbiadini, there was a hole to fill in the Sampdoria team, and 23-year-old Soriano used this match as an opportunity to present why he should take that place. After his performance against Parma, it would be difficult for Sinisa Mihajlovic to choose anyone but Soriano. The Italian international showed good positioning to score his side’s second goal and was a key part in the build up to their first.
Carlos Tevez – Juventus
The Argentine provides the experience in this Team of the Week’s attack as he scored twice for La Vecchia Signora which gave Juventus a five point lead at the top of the Serie A table. As always it is difficult to see a successful Juventus side without the 30-year-old mastermind, and he is expected to win his side the Champions League season, especially if he can link up well with his fellow, for example Claudio Marchisio who assisted his second goal this weekend. He received a huge round of applause when he was substituted off against Verona, and deservedly so.
Domenico Berardi – Sassuolo
It wasn’t Simone Zaza who stole the Neroverdi limelight against Genoa, but Berardi who both won and scored a penalty for his team as well as scoring a second to finish off a counter attack later on in the game. Sassuolo were presented with many goal scoring opportunities thanks to the 20-year-old’s passing and attacking runs into dangerous areas on the field.
Paulo Dybala – Palermo
The 21-year-old once again showed why his signature is wanted by so many big clubs after scoring for Palermo as well as showing off his skill against Roma. Dybala opened the scoring in the first couple of minutes of the game when he took advantage of a defensive mistake, and he almost doubled his tally later on. His skill and speed provided a source of energy in the Palermo side and it is difficult to see Dybala at the club next season because his performances have been exemplary.
