Serie A Round 30 Preview: April fools or full of the joys of spring?

Date: 2nd April 2019 at 4:10pm
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With the interest in the Scudetto race slowly ebbing away, there are plenty of unresolved issues left in Serie A as we enter April.

We begin with Champions League hopefuls AC Milan who are looking to defeat Udinese twice in a single campaign for the first time since 2007/08.

The visitors have scored the fewest goals from set piece situations in the league this season (five), whilst AC Milan have scored only 16 percent of their goals from the same situations – the lowest percentage of any Serie A team in 2018/19.

Relegation-threatened Cagliari are winless against Juventus since November 2009: since then, they’ve managed three draws and 13 defeats in 16 top-flight matches.

Champions Juventus have won the most points from losing positions in away games in this season (10), after winning three of the five matches they’ve been trailing in away from home.

In the last three Serie A games between Empoli and Napoli played in Tuscany, both teams have scored at least two goals – 15 in total, five per match on average).

With the win against Roma last time out, Napoli have won two consecutive Serie A games for the first time in 2019. However the Partenopei have conceded in each of their last four Serie A games, but haven’t conceded in five in a row since February 2017.

In potentially the dullest fixture of the weekend, the only previous Serie A meeting between Frosinone and Parma is the reverse fixture this season, which ended 0-0.

That match saw only two shots on target, one from each team and in this campaign, only two meetings have seen fewer shots on target – one in Parma v Bologna and Sampdoria v Sassuolo. Yawn!

In the last 11 Serie A games between Genoa and Inter, a home win for the Nerazzurri has alternated with a home win for Genoa and the Nerazzurri the reverse fixture 5-0 this season.

The hosts have won each of their last five Serie A games against Inter at the Stadio Ferraris, keeping four clean sheets in the process.

Out-of-favour/injured/troublemaking – insert your own reason – Inter talisman Mauro Icardi (122 goals) is one goal from reaching Christian Vieri (123) in eighth place in Inter’s all-time top scorer list in all competitions. Will he be given the chance to equal this in this match?

Over to the capital now where Roma are winless in their last two Serie A games against Fiorentina (D1, L1). The last time they failed to win in three consecutive games against La Viola was back in April 2012 (D1, L2).

Draw specialists Fiorentina have tied 14 games in this campaign this season and only in the 1970/71 season did they draw more (18) after 29 Serie A matchdays.

Towards the bottom of the table, SPAL have lost their last two Serie A games against Lazio and the last time they lost three meetings in a row against the Biancocelesti was in 1954.

The last time SPAL striker Alberto Paloschi scored more than once in a league game came against Lazio in August 2015. Could history repeat itself?

Visiting playmaker Luis Alberto has been involved in Lazio’s last four goals – two goals, two assists – and previously he had been involved in just three goals in 38 appearances.

Consistent Torino are unbeaten in their last four Serie A games against Sampdoria (W1, D3), winning in the reverse fixture this season. However the last time the Granata won both seasonal games against Sampdoria was back in 1976/77.

Sampdoria boss Marco Giampaolo will manage his 300th Serie A game and has a record of  89 wins, 125 defeats and 85 draws, averaging 1.18 points per game.

Surprisingly, Sassuolo have won only one of their five home games against Chievo (D2, L2) and the Neroverdi have scored only three goals in the process.

Opposition Chievo striker Mariusz Stepinski has not scored in his last seven Serie A games and only had a longer drought in Serie A (11) between October 2017 and March 2018. Could there be a better fixture to end this barren run?

Finally to Bergamo where Atalanta have won their last six top-flight games against Bologna, which is their longest run of consecutive wins against a single opponent in the top flight.

Curiously Rodrigo Palacio’s last eight Serie A goals have been scored in away games. The Bologna striker has bagged three goals against Atalanta in the top flight, with the last two at the Stadio Atleti Azzurri d’Italia.

 

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