Last week Nonno was RED HOT going 7 for 10 for the week including 5 for 5 on Sunday. Hope you were along for the ride!
And now for something a little different! For these midweek fixtures I am joined by longtime reader and blog friend Roberto Palma!
Quick intro: Howdy folks! Roberto Palma from Panama joining Mike this week. I have been a Milan fan since 1995 and I have been a part of this community since 2009. I first found Gianfranco’s blog on the Offside and have participated ever since!
Welcome to Roberto! Now on to the games!
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JUVENTUS V LECCE Juve got humiliated last week. Everyone is on Max’s ass for what is happening there. Here’s the thing though. He didn’t make a howler in goal. He didn’t score an own goal. He didn’t blow an easy finish that was put on a platter. He’s not wearing number 5 and looking lost in the midfield and he’s certainly not wearing 3 and looking scared of the damn ball. They will rotate and be ready. You all know I have been riding Lecce for a year now and have deep man love for Falcone and their project. Here’s the thing… they aren’t gonna finish top 4. It’s been a nice start but the their first loss comes here. JUVE WINS
ROBERTO: 5 weeks in Lecce is in UCL spots. They have maintained their unbeaten run and are in 3rd place. Juventus lost to Sassuolo with some huge howlers. Pogba is still out as is DeSciglio. Banda and Dermaku will be missing for Lecce. DRAW
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CAGLIARI V MILAN Cagliari have 0 wins in 5 games. Cagliari have scored 1 goal in 5 games. They have only conceded 6 goals in 5 games…. so they aren’t exactly getting run over. This will be a battle. Milan is going on the road, actually to an island in this case, and will need to rotate as games come thick and fast. It will be a struggle but Milan should have enough to win. Take a peak at the Cagliari Win or Draw though. This stinks of a 0-0 draw but I’ll go with my gut and say MILAN WINS
ROBERTO: Krunic out concerns me but still MILAN WINS
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EMPOLI V SALERNITANA WOW something stinks around here. Must be 17 vs 20 in the table! These 2 have combined for 0 wins and 22 goals conceded over 10 games. One of these things does stink far worse than the other though. Empoli are probably going wire to wire in the basement. Salernitana actually have quite a few very good players. There’s no reason they should be this bad. Can they get a win on the road though? That’s a tough call. I’ll say Empoli finally score a goal but Salernitana get 2 as SALERNITANA WINS
ROBERTO: Empoli is once again on par with their 3rd season self destruct button. LOL. Salernitana is always a slow starter. SALERNITANA WINS
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HELLAS VERONA V ATALANTA It’s the ‘something has to give’ game of the week. Hellas has been excellent at home going back to last season’s home stretch. It’s not just grinta either. They have a cast of guys in Montipo, Faraoni, Ngonge and Bonazzoli that actually have some skill. Atalanta are the Road Warriors of Serie A (Insert wrestling pun here). That and they are deeper this year than they have ever been. Just this past week they were able to bring Pasalic, Muriel and Toloi all on late to finish off Cagliari. They are deep and talented. Will they win here? Heart says yes. Brain says no. I’ll say take the BTTS, take the over and we see something like a 2-2 DRAW
ROBERTO: CDK led-Atalanta comes to Hellas Verona. Goals aplenty in this one. ATALANTA WINS 3-2
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INTER V SASSUOLO Inter is the best team in the league. No need to go into details. Sassuolo are sometimes the mouse that roars but they are like that because they don’t do it week in and week out. Don’t overthink this folks. INTER WINS
ROBERTO: Sassuolo is Jekyll and Hyde. We don’t know what we are going to get from them. Inter is in full cruise control and I do not see them dropping points at San Siro INTER WINS
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LAZIO V TORINO Lazio appear to be having a hard time figuring things out BUT this always happens to them in Europe. They never have the depth for all the games. Usually they can at least get through the Europa Group Stage before they flake out but the Champions League is a different animal. They just don’t have the horses. They will try and compete on both fronts for a minute and that rotation will cost them in the league. What better time for Torino to come to town! Jurich might as well be the angel of death with his negative tactics and SMS’s little brother in goal. Like their game against Roma this too will be a slog. The defense will be tight but Immobile knows the drill here. This will be low scoring but I think Immobile finds a way through and LAZIO WINS
ROBERTO: Lazio are struggling. Results are not happening. Ultras are already being their usual dummies. Torino is slowly getting it right. Smells like a DRAW
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NAPOLI V UDINESE Napoli are currently a raging dumpster fire. No one looks happy. The coach looks clueless and EVERYONE seems to know it except him. This reminds me a lot of the Giampaolo experience when he was at Milan. He’s got 2 choices here… start the starters and hope they just go out and win the game OR rotate like crazy and hope the bench guys get the win and make the coach look good. Fortunately an equally ugly train wreck is coming to town in Udinese. Their problems stretch back to last year. They have just 5 wins and 27 points from their last 35 matches. They sold but didn’t spend. Deulofeu is still starting. Sottil’s seat is getting HOT. I’ll say no matter who is on the field it’s a blowout. NAPOLI WINS
ROBERTO: Napoli is still in a slump. They remain unable to get their mojo with Garcia in charge. Udinese is a mockery of their former selves. Udinese coach (Sottil) gets axed for blood this season NAPOLI WINS
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FROSINONE V FIORENTINA Initial reaction: This will be a goal bonanza. Better thought-out thorough analysis: This will be a GOAL BONANZA. These 2 teams have combined for 35 total goals and against in 10 games. That’s 3.5 per game. Take the over. Take BTTS. Take an over on shots. Take an over on anything really. Also might be interesting to see the odds on Frosinone on a win or draw. Most importantly take some time to watch this one. It should be fun. I’ll say we get a 4-4 DRAW
ROBERTO: In my eyes the MATCH OF THE WEEK! Frosinone are playing good football and Fiorentina plays a Zeman-esque style this season. Goals galore! FROSINONE WINS
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MONZA V BOLOGNA Monza continue to Monza. I know it’s a broken record but it’s true. Gagliardini stepped up to give them a well earned point at Lazio last week. A game they frankly controlled most of. Colpani continues to look good. A top half of the table finish looks very real again. Bologna have had the toughest schedule so far and this game is no different. Motta’s men have used this time to sew up the back and it’s working. They repeatedly frustrated Napoli last week. Ferguson and Aebischer are rock solid in the midfield. Each could earn big money moves soon. Bologna continues to find gems from every corner of the world. I’d look for another cagey performance here as they will be more than happy with a point on the road but could steal a win. Taking them to win is tempting but I’ll say DRAW
ROBERTO: Bologna has made it out with 6 points in what I consider to be a very harsh schedule. Leaning Monza depending on how Colpani is on his day. BOLOGNA WINS
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GENOA V ROMA After a horrendous start Genoa have shored up the defense and only conceded 4 in 4. They’ve also picked up 4 points in those games. De Winter and Strootman have done well and Retegui is at least a threat. Gudmundsson has something to offer in the attack too. I think Roma rotates and then when needed bring on the big guns late. Translation: about the 60th minute we see Dybala and Lukaku come into a 0-0 game that Roma try and sneak late. Will it work? Probably. I don’t see many goals here. Most likely either 1-0 or 1-1. I think we see a Lukaku late winner as ROMA WINS
ROBERTO: Rough start for both teams. Roma can’t catch a break with injuries. Gonna be a fun evening in the Marassi, but I’ll say it’s a DRAW.
Final Thoughts
Thanks to Roberto for joining me for this weeks midweek fixtures. Tune in on your lunch break, dinner break or middle of the night for those in Australia!
#ONWEGO
Enjoy the Calcio!
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.