Napoli open Week 23 in Bologna and Serie A’s bridesmaids must win well to keep the heat on the top two.
Pushing Juventus close for much of last season, thanks to the goals of their former hitman Gonzalo Higuain, Maurizio Sarri’s team is hanging onto the leaders’ coat-tails again with 16 league football games to go.
WEEK 23 SUNDAY:
Bologna vs Napoli
Handicap betting odds tell us Napoli will be too strong for Roberto Donadoni’s men. With 25 goals coming from the midfield trio of Dries Mertens, Marek Hamsik, and Lorenzo Insigne, striker Jose Callejon has plenty of help up front. Bologna have been on a recent run of winning every other game so Napoli beware. At odds of 2.14 with a 1.25 handicap, the visitors should be okay, though.
Pescara vs Lazio
Lazio’s win against Inter in that bad-tempered Coppa quarter-final may be the spur Ciro Immobile and co need to make a push for the fourth Champions League place. Pescara, with just nine points and 12 from safety, are playing for pride alone now, I fear.
Atalanta vs Cagliari
Atalanta certainly haven’t given up on a top-four spot either, just a point behind Lazio and three behind Inter. The hosts have won five of their last six at home and will fancy a win against 14th-placed Cagliari. Marco Borriello presents the visitors’ biggest threat with ten goals to his name this season.
AC Milan vs Sampdoria
Two points further back in seventh, Milan will have to play out the remainder of the season without midfielder Giacomo Bonaventura, who has undergone thigh surgery. It’s time for the hosts to end a three-match losing run, but Sampdoria beat Roma last week!
Empoli vs Torino
Without a win in five in all competitions, ninth-placed Torino need to kick-start its campaign, which has been reliant on the 14 goals of Andrea Belotti. Seventeenth-placed Empoli could have pulled well away from the drop zone but were stuffed 4-1 by 18th-placed Crotone. Keep looking over your shoulders, boys!
Chievo vs Udinese
11th plays tenth, both on 28 points, and last week Chievo ended an alarming run of five consecutive defeats by winning away to high-flying Lazio. Udinese ended its own three-match losing run with an impressive victory over Milan. Two teams with their tails up and not much to worry about.
Genoa vs Sassuolo
A strong start to the season has been enough to see Genoa reasonably safe, but without a win in seven, they will hope to bag enough points before too long for mathematical safety. Sassuolo are just a point behind in 16th, having recovered from a very sluggish first 15 games.
WEEK 23 MONDAY:
Palermo vs Crotone
Crotone are still within a shout of survival after a resounding win over Empoli, and another win in Palermo could pull them to within five points of their target. I think it’s a bigger ask for Palermo, two points behind, and a draw is no good to either. Look out for an exciting end-to-end battle here.
Juventus vs Inter Milan
After a seven-match winning run taking Inter up the fourth, Inter’s bubble may have been burst by their loss to Lazio in the Coppa quarter-final. So a trip to Juventus will be a serious test; and with Higuain now the league’s joint top scorer with 15 goals, you can get 1.81 on the hosts with a -0.75 handicap.
WEEK 23 WEDNESDAY:
AS Roma vs Fiorentina
Second-placed Roma will be kicking themselves after surrendering a lead twice to lose to Sampdoria last week to end an impressive winning run. Now four points behind the leaders, they can’t afford many slip-ups and need to be ready for a tricky Fiorentina team, which beat Juventus in January, to give the chasers hope.
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
