The Serie A finish is just around the corner with less than ten games left to play as teams make the final push towards securing a place in Europe and avoiding relegation.
In Round 31, Cagliari showed they have no intention of being relegated to Serie B as they beat Parma in a stunning stoppage time drama, while Atalanta inched a step closer towards cementing their place in next season’s Champions League with a late win over Juventus.
Here we take a look at the best statistical XI of Serie A Round 31 in collaboration with the FotMob app.
Goalkeeper – Pierluigi Gollini (Atalanta)
The 26-year-old Atalanta shot-stopper has kept his 7thclean sheet of the Serie A season against Juventus and was the only goalkeeper not to concede a goal in Round 31.
Although nothing spectacular, Gollini deserves a spot on the best XI list for his diving save to prevent a Juventus goal. The Italian goalkeeper conceded 0.82 expected goals (xGC), meaning the one save he made was crucial in earning three points.
Congratulations to Pierluigi #Gollini and Massimo #Biffi on the winning of the APPORT award as they've been voted "Best Goalkeeper" and "Best Goalkeeping Coach" for the 2019/20 @SerieA_EN season! ??
? https://t.co/NXa0XcqNr1#GoAtalantaGo ⚫️? pic.twitter.com/Tqd2a5gjmb
— Atalanta B.C. (@Atalanta_BC) April 14, 2021
Right-Back / Right Wing-Back – Pierre Kalulu (Milan)
Solid defensive performances help teams get important results, and Milan are a side that are increasingly relying on that, as their attacking form has not been great of late. The French right-back Pierre Kalulu ensured the Rossoneri maintained their second place in the league with a solid display against Genoa.
The 20-year-old registered his first assist of the season after nodding the ball into the path of Ante Rebic, who opened the scoring, and also made 10 progressive and 3 key passes. In addition, the Frenchman won 5 of 7 defensive duels (71% success rate) and was successful in 3 tackling attempts (100% tackle win ratio).
A 'silent' but effective signing. The in-depth analysis by @themilanisti11 https://t.co/J2DhdAzPhV
— Milan Reports (@MilanReports) April 16, 2021
Right Center-Back – Danilo (Bologna)
After two 1-0 defeats in a row on matchdays 29 and 30, Bologna finally registered their first Serie A win in April, with a 4-1 victory over Spezia on Sunday. Siniša Mihajlović’s side impressed not only with strong attacking performance, but also with solid defensive work.
The 36-year-old center-back Danilo was the heart of Bologna’s defence, playing a role at both ends of the pitch. The Brazilian veteran claimed his first assist of the season when he set up Mattias Svenberg’s goal, as well as made 7 defensive clearances and 8 ball recoveries.
Na Serie A, o experiente zagueiro Danilo deu assistência para Svanberg marcar o terceiro gol do Bologna na goleada por 4 a 1 sobre o Spezia. pic.twitter.com/tmMPYtQj1Q
— Meia Ofensivo (@meiaofensivo) April 19, 2021
Left Center-Back – Gleison Bremer (Torino)
On Sunday, Torino secured only their second home win of this Serie A season, but what a massive win it was. Il Toro took a big step towards staying in Serie A with a 3-1 win over Roma at the Olympic Stadium. The left centre-back Gleison Bremer played a big part in nullifying Roma’s attacking threat.
The 24-year-old Brazilian international had a terrific game as part of Torino’s back five, impressing in all defensive areas. Bremer won a remarkable 10 duels (77% success), 4 of which were aerial duels, made 3 interceptions, recovered the ball 12 times and blocked one opponent’s shot.
Torino central defender Gleison Bremer has discussed the rumoured interest of Liverpool.
The Brazilian is Torino's best player and has been with them since 2018, improving year on year ? https://t.co/1eUEyw7w3R
— Empire of the Kop (@empireofthekop) April 2, 2021
Left-Back / Left Wing-Back – Cristian Ansaldi (Torino)
Joining his Torino teammate on the list is the Argentine left wing-back Cristian Ansaldi. The 34-year-old was part of a solid defensive back line and contributes greatly, especially on the offensive end, as he provided an assist for Antonio Sanabria’s goal. Furthermore, Ansaldi was solid in possession throughout the game, having completed 83% of his passes, 3 of which were registered as key passes.
An updated rating of #SerieA most threatening passers.
xThreat per 100 pass attempts:
Ante Rebic | AC Milan – 0.64
Cristian Ansaldi | Torino – 0.63
Josip Ilicic | Atalanta – 0.61
Rodrigo de Paul | Udinese – 0.51
Federico Chiesa | Juventus – 0.49* xT of failed passes = 0 pic.twitter.com/eWnP5fwn7z
— Mark (@markrstats) January 24, 2021
Central Midfielder – Mattias Svanberg (Bologna)
Bologna scored four goals for only the second time this Serie A season, and a tremendous attacking effort from their central midfielders was one of the main factors behind it. On Sunday, the Swedish international Mattias Svanberg netted his first brace of the 2020/21 league season, which deservedly earned him the man of the match award.
The 22-year-old central midfielder showed excellent goal-scoring instincts against Spezia, converting 2 of the 3 shots he attempted during the 90 minutes. Additionally, the Swede created 2 big scoring chances and made 2 key passes.
? Serie A
MS | Bologna 4-1 Spezia
⚽ 12' Riccardo Orsolini (P)
⚽ 18' Musa Barrow
⚽ 34' Ardian Ismajili
⚽ 54' Mattias Svanberg
⚽ 60' Mattias Svanberg pic.twitter.com/7z3aqTtD8M— Skorer (@skorermilliyet) April 18, 2021
Central Midfielder – Rodrigo De Paul (Udinese)
It would be fair to say that a player receiving a red card rarely to never makes the list of the best-rated XI of the week. However, it does make sense when the same player scores twice and wins the game for your team. Udinese’s Rodrigo De Paul is an extreme example of this, as the Argentine scored twice and was sent off in the 2-1 win over Crotone.
The 26-year-old central midfielder showed remarkable shooting accuracy as all of his 3 shot attempts hit the target (100% accuracy) and 2 of them subsequently resulted in goals (66% shot conversion).
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Rodrigo De Paul nets his second goal to restore Udinese's lead ❄️?
You can watch live Serie A action on the Livescore app, ??? ???? ???
(Available in ?? and ?? only) #SerieA #CrotoneUdinese #LiveScore pic.twitter.com/iesta8Gcjk
— LiveScore (@livescore) April 17, 2021
Central Attacking Midfielder – Razvan Marin (Cagliari)
Cagliari’s astonishing comeback in injury time against Parma is a contender for moment of the season. Trailing 3-1 down with half an hour to go, Cagliari pulled off an unbelievable comeback, with midfielder Razvan Marin playing a key role.
The 24-year-old Romanian contributed a goal and an assist against Parma and was one of the main driving forces in Cagliari’s attack overall. The midfielder also completed 6 shot-creating actions and a remarkable 15 progressive ball carries.
Răzvan Marin in Cagliari’s 4-3 win ? Parma:
⏰ 90 mins
⭐️ 8.8 rating & MOTM
⚽️ 1 goal
?️ 1 assist
? 57/68 (84%) passes cmp
? 1 key pass
? 2/4 long balls
? 4/11 ground & 1/2 aerial duels
? 1/3 dribbles
❌ 1 interc & 2 tackles#CagliariParma #forzaCasteddu #SerieA pic.twitter.com/3jF0mig8dx— Romanian Football (@RoFtbl) April 17, 2021
Left-Winger / Left Forward – Musa Barrow (Bologna)
Our third Bologna player to make it into the best XI lineup this week is 22-year-old winger Musa Barrow. The Gambian international scored his 7th goal and provided 8thassist of the season against Spezia in what has been an impressive season so far for the young winger.
Musa Barrow scored and assisted for Bologna. The scorpions forward is in phenomenal form. pic.twitter.com/3sKrFViHQN
— Momodou Gajaga (@MomodouGajaga) April 18, 2021
Striker – Joaquin Correa (Lazio)
There are not many teams that manage to score five times in a single game, but when they do, the strikers are often the main actors involved in that flood of goals. Joaquin Correa was one of the players who contributed to Lazio’s goal fest against Benevento, scoring his 4th goal of the season. Additionally, the Argentine created one big scoring chance, which was not converted by his Lazio teammate.
Lazio forward Joaquin Correa could be available for just half of his €80M release clause, with the Rome side tipped to consider sacrificing the 26-year-old to bring in cash during the summer. Liverpool have enquired about his situation and are interested. [@ilmessaggeroit – ??]
— LFC Transfer Room (@LFCTransferRoom) April 18, 2021
Striker – Ciro Immobile (Lazio)
What would they do without him is the question all Lazio fans might ask themselves. Despite missing his 3rd penalty of this Serie A season, Ciro Immobile netted twice against Benevento to take his season goal tally to 16. Such achievement sees the Italian striker climb to 5th place in the league scoring charts.
150 – Lazio’s Ciro Immobile scored his 150th goal in Serie A, eight years and 235 days after netting his first – only four players in the history of the competition have reached this milestone in less time: Nordahl, Meazza, Nyers and Signori. Gotha.#LazioBenevento pic.twitter.com/WHxdiRcWJH
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) April 18, 2021