Serie A Midweek Preview ai??i?? Round 21: Parma Host Juventus, Lazio Play Milan

By Amlan Chaudhury
13 years Ago

TheHardTackle presents to you a consolidated preview of all the Serie A fixtures lined up during the midweek..

Parma v Juventus

Parma will look to stop a full-strength Juventus from running riot when these two teams meet this midweek. While Parma have descended to mid-table mediocrity, Juventus have been unbeaten so far this season. Conte-led Juventus have managed to remain unbeaten not only at home but also on the road. While Parma are coming off a 1-1 draw against Catania, Juventus earned a moral-boosting 2-1 victory over Udinese in the last matchday to consolidate their position at the top of the table.

Juventus have a full strength squad to choose from for this match while Parma miss the services of Santacroce. Conte will look to take as much from this match as possible and heap more pressure on Milan, whom they meet on the 8th of February in the Italian Cup. Players to watch out will be Matri from Juventus and Giovincio from Parma.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Parma 1-2 Juventus

Atalanta v Genoa

After starting as one of the most promising teams this year, Atalanta have slipped big time, trying to keep up with their roaring start. They were also the worst-hit due to the match-fixing scandals that erupted late last year. After back to back defeats to Lazio and Juventus, Atalanta finally caught a break and won 1-0 over Cesena in the last matchday. Players missing in action are Bellini and Capelli.

Genoa have been having their usual season so far, causing upsets here and there. Their unlikely victory over Napoli by a margin of 3-2 was by far the most shocking of results from last matchday. Despite having lost Merkel to Milan, they have come up even stronger. Genoa will be missing the likes of Rossi, Veloso, Dainelli, Antonelli and Bovo for this match.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Atalanta 1-1 Genoa

Bologna v Fiorentina

Bologna have had a miserable season so far and have only won 5 out of their 20 matches so far. The only bright spots for them has been the draws against the big boys of Italy – Juventus, Milan and Napoli. Players missing this clash are Raggi, Kone, Loria and Pulzetti.

Fiorentina’s topsy-turvy season received a fillip in the last matchday as they finally won a match at home since beating Roma in early December. Jovetic is expected to start in this match and with 10 goals in the season so far, he will be player to watch out for in this upcoming encounter. The players missing will be Kroldrup and Babacar.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Bologna 1-1 Fiorentina

Cagliari v Roma

Two 4-3-1-2 formations take on each other as Cagliari plays host to Roma in the upcoming match. Cagliari have had an indifferent season, winning only a single match in both the months of December and January. In their last match, they were whipped 3-0 by Milan. Injury wise, they will miss the services of Sampaio, NenA?, Eriksson and Ariaudo.

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‘Project Roma’ finally seems to be on track with Totti leading the charge. The Roman General has become the leading goalscorer in Serie A of all time and is not looking to stop anytime sooner. The only worrying thing for Roma is the absence of key players like Pjanic, De Rossi, Osvaldo and Burdisso.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Cagliari 0-3 Roma

Internazionale v Palermo

After an unbeaten run which saw them defeat Milan and also close the huge gap at the top, Inter finally fell prey to Lecce in the last matchday. Defeat would not have hurt them so much but the actions of Sneijder surely did. Ranieri is a top boss no doubt, but he will need to prove the same once more in the upcoming match. Players missing in action are Muntari, Stankovic, Forlan and Thiago Motta.

Palermo are currently 8th in the table with a relatively new manager on board. Mutti was signed to replace Mangia and so far has won only 2 matches out of 5. They are riding the wave of two back to back victories over Genoa and Novara, that too by comfortable margins. The trio of Ilicic, Miccoli and Budan will try to once again rock the Inter boat and throw them further off course. Players missing are Hernandez and Bacinovic.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Internazionale 2-2 Palermo

Lazio v Milan

With the clamor of Cisse leaving Lazio growing by the hour, Lazio will take on Milan this midweek. Lazio so far have been fourth in the League and will look to stop Milan in their tracks in the upcoming match. Their star striker Klose has been in inspirational form this season after his transfer and will look to trouble the Milan backline. The players missing will be Brocchi, Kozak, Makinwa, Alfaro, Cana and Mauri.

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Milan on the other hand look at a very busy February. 8 matches spread across the smallest month of the year will test the Rossoneri to their limit. After Lazio, Milan face Napoli, Juventus, Udinese and Arsenal in what will undoubtedly be one of their toughest stretches this year. The players missing from action will be Boateng, Flamini, Cassano, Yepes, Aquilani, Gattuso, Pato, Merkel and Strasser.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Lazio 1-3 Milan

Napoli v Cesena

After a strong start to the season, it seems that Napoli have somewhat lost their way in the topmost tier of Italian football. The trio of Hamsik, Cavani and Lavezzi has waned after an explosive start where they defeated Milan. Few victories here and there among a plethora of losses have left them 15 points from the top and it is this negligence towards the domestic scene that might cost them dear at the end of the season.

Cesena is struggling badly and is one of the relegation threatened teams this season. With only 4 victories, their chances of staying in Serie A look bleak to say the least. The Seahorses are extremely dependent on Mutu for scoring and he will look to continue in the same vein along with Malonga upfront.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Napoli 2-0 Cesena

Siena v Catania

Bottom lying Siena take on Catania this midweek hoping to somehow escape the relegation zone. Inspite of CalaiA?’s 9 goals, they have flattered to deceive on multiple occasion, the most recent being their loss to Fiorentina after a superb victory over Chievo in the Italian Cup. Siena will miss Brkic and Terzi in this match.

Catania, another mid table team has only lost twice at home this season. Defeating Palermo and drawing against Parma has been the highlight of their season so far as they once more engage in a skirmish to stay in Serie A.Ai??Capuano will miss this match due to injury.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Siena 1-1 Catania

Udinese v Lecce

After a shocking loss to Juventus in the last matchday, Udinese will look to bring their campaign back on track in the upcoming match against the team lying in the bottom portion of the table. After a strong start, Udinese’s recent losses to Genoa and Juventus have come as a massive blow as the club looks to challenge for top honors this season. Di Natale has been on target 14 times so far and will look to continue in the same vein in this match. Players missing in action are Fabbrini, Coda, Barreto and Pinzi.

Lecce on the other hand stunned Inter in their last match with a 1-0 victory. Di Michele starts in this match alongside Muriel and will look to thwart the Udinese defense. Players missing in action are Carrozzieri, Giandonato, Falcone, Esposito and Julio Sergio.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Udinese 4-0 Lecce

Novara v Chievo

The newest team of Serie A, Novara have found life to be extremely difficult and have thus sunk to the last place in the league. They have won only twice this season and have the worst goal difference in the league with minus 22. The players missing in action are Ludi, Coser, Centurioni and Marianini.

Chievo on the other hand have thrived on inconsistency. From victory over Napoli to defeat against Milan, Chievo fans have been through the entire gamut of emotions this season. They will look to make little work of Novara in this match with an outright victory on the cards.

TheHardTackleai??i??s Prediction: Novara 0-3 Chievo

Categories: AC Milan, COVER STORY, Inter Milan, Italia Serie A, Juventus
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