Midweek Serie A action gets underway on Tuesday as Atalanta and Juventus face off newly-promoted Venezia and Salernitana, respectively. And while last weekend’s foes have seemingly winnable tasks on their hands, Fiorentina entertain a resurgent Sampdoria in an intriguing match-up in Florence.
Without further ado, let’s take a quick look at the three Serie A match-ups to watch out for on Tuesday.
Atalanta vs Venezia
Tuesday’s Serie A action kicks off at the Gewiss Stadium with the first top-flight clash between Atalanta and Venezia since March 2002.
If there were any doubts regarding Atalanta’s top-four credentials, Saturday’s 1-0 triumph over Juventus at the Allianz Stadium put them firmly to bed.
Now riding on a handsomely-looking seven-game unbeaten streak in Serie A (W5, D2), La Dea will aim to solidify their place in the top-four run-in and potentially lay the foundations for a title bid.
An electrifying 5-2 walloping of Spezia in their most recent league outing in Bergamo halted Atalanta’s three-game winless Serie A run on home soil (D2, L1).
Gian Piero Gasperini’s side could record back-to-back Serie A victories at the Gewiss Stadium for the first time this season, and Venezia might be powerless to stop it.
Despite putting in utmost efforts against reigning champions Inter over the weekend, the newly-promoted visitors eventually went down 2-0 at home.
Now heading to hostile turf, where they’ve averaged just 0.62 goals per match this season, Venezia will face the formidable challenge in the shape of regular Serie A top-four fixture Atalanta.
Bergamo has not been a welcoming surrounding for the Lagunari throughout history, as they’ve lost seven of their nine top-flight matches here (W1, D1).
Prediction: Atalanta to win despite a -1 handicap / Over 3.5 goals
Fiorentina vs Sampdoria
The two sides that have had identical returns from their last five Serie A fixtures (W2, L2) are set to trade tackles at the Stadio Artemio Franchi as Fiorentina take on Sampdoria.
Consistency has not been Fiorentina’s strong suit this season, as evidenced by the fact that they’ve alternated victory and defeat across their last seven league outings.
Though headline performer Dusan Vlahovic gave La Viola a second-half lead at Empoli on Saturday, the hosts’ quick-fire double between the 87th and 89th minute turned the tables on the visitors.
A 2-1 loss at the Stadio Carlo Castellani means Vincenzo Italiano’s team head into midweek matchday as the only Serie A side yet to draw a game this term (W7, L7).
Though it could sound surprising, a draw may not be a bad result for Fiorentina when you consider they lost both last season’s meetings with Sampdoria by an identical 2-1 scoreline.
Seeking their third consecutive Serie A triumph over La Viola for the first time since 2005, Sampdoria have enjoyed a noticeable upturn in form in the build-up to this fixture.
Following a run of three league defeats in a row, the Blucerchiati have claimed two successive victories by a two-goal margin, climbing up the ladder and leaving 18th-placed Genoa five points behind in the process.
With nine of the last ten Serie A meetings between Fiorentina and Sampdoria seeing over 2.5 goals and both teams scoring, choosing goals at the expense of the outcome could be a wise decision to make.
Prediction: Over 2.5 goals / Both teams to score
Salernitana vs Juventus
Anything other than a clear-cut victory will be deemed unfathomable as underperforming Serie A heavyweights Juventus head to the Stadio Arechi to meet basement boys Salernitana.
Juventus have found themselves in the unfamiliar territory following a narrow 1-0 home defeat to Atalanta over the weekend.
We’re now a third of the way through the Serie A season, and it’s fair to say that the Allianz Stadium chiefs had different expectations when they brought Massimiliano Allegri back to the helm in the summer.
The manager, who navigated the Bianconeri to five league titles on the bounce during his first spell in charge, has started to feel the heat only 14 matchdays into the season.
An underwhelming 42.86% win ratio after the inaugural 14 Serie A fixtures, coupled with a return of three defeats from their last five league games, sees Juve lagging seven points behind fourth-placed Atalanta.
Hopes of recovering the crown are already beyond the realm of possibility as stated by Allegri in the post-Atalanta press conference, but failing to land a top-four finish would be inconceivable for those donning the white-black.
Therefore, a trip to rock-bottom Salernitana could be a golden opportunity for Juventus to get their stop-start Serie A campaign up and running.
Prediction: Juventus to win