Round 27 Matchups! But first, the Champions League Quarterfinal draw and final 8 bracket…
Champions League Quarterfinal Draw - Milan x Napoli and Final Bracket
The draw is out and it is a doozy!
Final Bracket
Those that know me know that I’ve been privately pining for this matchup since before we knocked out Tottenham. Not only do I think we have a great chance against Napoli I also feel like we have no reason to fear them. We always play well against them and especially have played well at the Maradona lately. Madrid? Chelsea? City? Bayern? Death sentences. Inter? Have you seen the last few games we played against them? Nope. Benfica might be the most in form team in Europe besides Napoli. They are a bit of a mystery and teams from Portugal are GOOD. Napoli is who I wanted all along. We know them and we know how to play them. Be careful what you ask for? Maybe.
This reminds me of the heady days when I first discovered the blogosphere and found places like this. Back then the big debate was always what was more important, the league or the Champions League? For me that debate was always simple. Every year in my mind was Champions League or bust. People would get so pissed when we would play a weak squad in the league and lose to Siena or Reggina and then show up on a Champions League night and blast another European power. This year injuries and red hot Napoli made that decision for us. It’s Champions League or bust and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Can’t wait!
Round 27 Matchups
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SASSUOLO V SPEZIA The 2 surprise winners from last week, Sassuolo at Roma and Spezia vs Inter, meet each other in what turns out to be an important game for both. Sassuolo sit in 13th at 33 points. They are 5 points from Europe and 5 points from a relegation scrap. They are trending up with 3 wins in a row though. Lauriente, a long time favorite here, is heating up and leading the way. He has 5 goals in 6 and is eating LBs for breakfast. Even in the loss to Napoli he was a handful. Spezia’s win against Inter was massive. They are now 5 points from safety with 12 to play. In what might be a fun game, Sassuolo keeps rolling, Lauriente gets another, and SASSUOLO WINS
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ATALANTA V EMPOLI Atalanta have dropped 3 of 4 and their Champions league hopes are on life support. Included in those games is a single goal. Their last 2 home games they lost to Lecce and drew Udinese. Lookman has gone missing. The defense looks poor. No wonder Gasperini is whining so much at press conferences. Meanwhile Empoli has also lost 3 of 4. As mentioned before this is the norm for them. Vicario is out so even he’s not there to help. Outlook is bleak. Lookman gets back on the board and ATALANTA WINS
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MONZA V CREMONESE Monza continue to Monza. Though they do Monza better on the road than at home. Like Sassuolo, they sit in the midtable no-man’s land, free from safety but still a hot streak from climbing into Europe. A healthy Sensi has been a boon for them. Super smart pick up by Fester. Cremonese are done but at least they are not dead last. Just finishing 19th for them would be a success. Since accepting their fate the games have become very entertaining. Lots of goals lately includinh Tsadjout and Dessers both getting on the scoresheet. We might see goals here in a very fun/bad way. Survival is further cemented as MONZA WINS
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SALERNITANA V BOLOGNA Low and behold it’s Salernitana riding that new manager bump to survival again. This year it’s Paulo Sousa. He’s got them playing with pressure and now have 5 points in their last 3. Dia continues to score and Ochoa keeps saving the day. Gyomber has stepped in at CB and helped solidify things. Bologna were right on the edge of Europe before losing to Torino and drawing Lazio. Perhaps it’s a step too far for them right now. The defense is there but they still struggle mightily to score. Their last 5 games they have scored 0, 0, 1, 2 and 0. Barrow is just not the answer. Arnautovic needs to get out of the doghouse. Looks to me like a staring contest where Salernitana is able to hold the fort in a dull DRAW
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UDINESE V MILAN After writing the Udinese elegy for the last 2 months they finally got a much needed win. Granted it was against Empoli who you should probably bet against for the remaining 12 rounds. Udinese are still struggling to score but have tightened the back. Beto has 2 goals in 4 months. Success hasn’t scored all year. They’ve reverted from high scoring group to packing it in once again. That’s really their DNA. Milan need this before the break. Not having Giroud will hurt. Leão needs to reawaken for the stretch run. Let’s hope this is the game he can do it. This game will be a struggle. Goals will be scarce. Milan fans look for the nearest cliff to jump off of after a 0-0 DRAW
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SAMPDORIA V HELLAS VERONA A win here by Samp almost seals the deal on the bottom 3. Samp is done done. Hellas is almost done. A brief revival has been followed by 2 losses in a row. Don’t watch this game. Don’t gamble on it. Don’t even look at the result. It’s gonna be terrible. DRAW
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FIORENTINA V LECCE Fiorentina remain blistering hot. Six straight wins in all competitions. They have also found their scoring, boots potting 15 during that time. Italiano has figured things out and they are really ticking. Cabral is crushing it up top and Amrabat his the MF on lockdown. Lecce are on fumes. They’ve dropped 3 straight and haven’t scored in over 300 minutes. A trip to Florence is not what the doctor ordered. Safety is not secure and danger lurks. Fortunately the defense is still keeping them in games. I’m not sure they are up to this test though. La Viola steamroll into the break on 7 in a row as FIORENTINA WINS
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TORINO V NAPOLI Torino have found their form after a couple ugly defensive performances. Juric teams are best when they bar the door. Sanabria has become their go to guy as he now has 3 goals in 4. Napoli won’t care about any of that. They will start the starters and look to finish strong before the break. Torino might keep it scoreless until the half but Napoli will be too much. Kvara breaks through and Napoli runs away. Did I mention Napoli have only lost once in 21 games against Torino? NAPOLI WINS
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LAZIO V ROMA Lazio quietly dipped out of the Europa League yesterday. While that might not seem like a big deal, losses are losses. League form is solid though and I think it’s clear what Sarri’s intentions are. I picked them top 4 in the preseason and I’m sticking with it. Roma had the chance to get a firm hold on top 4 at home and flamed out against Sassuolo. Their only road win this calendar year is away to Spezia. That won’t change here. Lazio haven’t lost the road version of this Derby since 2016. That doesn’t change here either. I REALLY wanna say Lazio win here but I, like both teams, will settle for a DRAW
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INTER V JUVE HERE! WE! GO!!!!!! Perfect way to end the weekend before a break. Inter are the second best home team in the league and Juve are 4th best away. Inter have 27 home goals while Juve have only conceded 10 on the road. Inter have won their last 5 home games while Juve have won their last 5 on the road. Both teams advanced through Europe this week although Inter will have had 2 more days off coming into this game than Juve. Will that matter? Hard to say. Will Inter lose and be ready to fire Inzaghi again? Will Vlahovic and Chiesa get back on the board again after regaining confidence midweek? Will Lautaro score? Will Inzaghi continue to not start Brozovic? Can a Juve youngster be the hero? Will Rabiot continue to earn that massive payday this summer? So many questions for what should be a titanic battle. My heart says Inter bury them but my brain says Max guides Juve to a wildly exciting 2-2 DRAW
Some fun matchups on Friday and Saturday and then make sure you clear your slate Sunday. Two titanic matchups before the international break!
Happy watching!
Lisi
PS: If you enjoy making a few bets the KICKS and PICKS PODCAST is a must listen. They touch on a lot of Serie A action but also have their eyes on other leagues across Europe. Fun show with excellent insight. Great for anyone new to the betting scene