After a high scoring and some surprise scorelines in the Coppa Italia, will this weekend’s Serie A games give us more of the same?
We begin with a bottom of the table clash where Empoli have won three of their 15 Serie A matches against Chievo – all of these victories have arrived in home games. Visiting striker Mariusz Stepinski has already equalled his best top-flight season in terms of goals (five goals last season). The Polish striker has netted in two of the last three games he has started.
Title hopefuls Napoli failed to score in the last league match against Sampdoria: the last time they failed scored in two games in a row against Blucerchiati was back in 1985.
Opposition talisman Fabio Quagliarella has scored 16 goals in the first 21 games of this season, no Sampdoria player has ever done better at this point of the season: the record is held by Quagliarella himself (16 goals also in the first 21 games of the Blucerchiati in 2017/18). Can he continue his scintillating form?
Since moving to their new stadium, champions Juventus have won all four matches in Turin against Parma in the country’s top division, with an aggregate score of 15-2. Gervinho scored his first goal in Serie A for Parma in the previous match against Juventus – the Ivorian forward also scored in the last league match played in Turin, in November against Torino.
SPAL are winless in each of their last eight home matches in the league, but they have drawn their last five (L3): the last team to draw more consecutive games at home in Serie A were AS Roma in 2015 (six in a row). Torino striker Iago Falque scored a brace in his last appearance in the league at the Paolo Mazza stadium. However, the Spaniard has scored only one goal in his last nine appearances in the top-flight (vs Empoli in December).
Genoa and Sassuolo scored eight goals in the reverse fixture this season (5-3 to Genoa): as many as they managed in their previous six Serie A encounters. The hosts have conceded a league-high 21 goals during the first half of games this season. However, opponents Sassuolo have scored six of their last eight goals during the second halves.
Udinese lost their last home encounter with Fiorentina in the league (2-0 in April 2018), ending a seven-game unbeaten run against them in the league (W5 D2). Visiting striker Luis Muriel has scored three goals in his first two appearances in Serie A this season: the Colombian could become only the second player to score in each of his first three matches for Fiorentina in the top-flight (in the three points for a win era), after Luca Toni in September 2015.
The last goal Inter conceded at home in Serie A was back in September (against Fiorentina): they could keep eight clean sheets in a row at home for their first time in a single top-flight season. Newly-appointed Sinisa Mihajlovic made his managerial debut in the Italian top-flight with Bologna back in 2008/09, with a record of four wins, eight draws and nine defeats. This is not the easiest of starters for him.
Over to Rome for a Champions League qualification six-pointer. In the last five games between Roma and Milan at the Olimpico, there have never been more than two goals scored: two wins for the Giallorossi, two draws and a win for the Rossoneri. Home hitman Edin Dzeko netted a brace in his last Serie A game against Atalanta – he has not scored in two consecutive Serie A games since October 2017.
New Milan striker Krzysztof Piatek scored in each of his appearances at the Olimpico, in the first half of the season, against Lazio and Roma.
The 0-0 draw between Frosinone and Lazio back in February 2016 is the only point Frosinone have won in their six Serie A meetings against teams from Roma. Lazio are struggling to replicate the form of last season and have won only three of their last 12 league games (D5 L4), keeping just a single clean sheet during this period.
Finally to out-of-form Cagliari who have won only one of their last 11 Serie A games (D5 L5): only Bologna (five) have collected fewer points than the Sardinians (eight) during this period.
On the flip side of this record, opponents Atalanta have won 26 points and scored 38 goals (2.9 on average per game) in their last 13 games – only Juventus (35) and Napoli (30) have gained more points in Serie A during this period.
