Torino host Sampdoria on Sunday afternoon at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin.
Going into the fourth round of the Serie A campaign the Blucerchiati and Il Toro sit in third and fourth position respectively, with only goal difference separating the two.
Samp have started the season brightly and have scored a considerable amount of goals, beginning with a 5-2 thrashing of newcomers Carpi, followed by an impressive 2-2 draw at the Stadio San Paolo against Napoli.
They continued their crushing Serie A form after the international break by defeating Bologna 2-0.
Torino have also began in positive fashion after defeating Serie A new boys Frosinone 2-1 and also recording a 3-1 win over Fiorentina. The Granata also earned a well deserved 2-2 draw following the international break at Hellas Verona.
After the disappointment of failing to progress past Serbian side FK Vojvodina in the qualification round of the Europa League, coach Walter Zenga has managed to turn his side’s fortunes around. The Italian has altered his style of play and Sampdoria have since scored a league high of nine goals.
The undisputed star of the team is Brazilian born forward Eder. He has so far scored five goals in three matches during this campaign thanks to help from his striking counterpart Luis Muriel.
For the Granata, the Italian attacking duo of newcomer Daniele Baselli and veteran striker Fabio Quagliarella have impressed so far this season combining for five goals. Former Palermo striker Andrea Belotti is expected to start from the bench and will be looking to make his home debut for the Toro after sealing a €7.5 Million transfer away from the Sicilian side.
Last season both home teams collected all three points. Sampdoria’s impressive early season 2-0 victory was out-shined on the return leg in Turin, with Torino demolishing Sampdoria 5-1.
With a victory on Sunday either team could catapult into second place behind league leaders Inter.
Zenga’s side will be without Lorenzo De Silvestri, Nenad Krsticic and Andrea Coda who are all recovering from injury.
Torino coach Giampiero Ventura also has injuries to worry about as Nikola Maksimovic, Alexander Farnerud, Danilo Avelar and Alessandro Gazzi will miss the crucial encounter.
Form Guide: Torino (D-W-W), Sampdoria (W–D-W)
Torino: Padelli; Bovo, Jansson, Glik; Peres, Acquah, Vives, Baselli, Molinaro; Quagliarella, M. Lopez.
