Italy Round 4

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Cagliari vs Napoli Preview:

Possible stating lineups:

Cagliari:
Scuffet; Zappa, Mina, Luperto; Zortea, Gaetano, Marin, Deiola, Augello; Luvumbo, Piccoli

Napoli:
Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Buongiorno; Mazzocchi, Lobotka, Anguissa, Olivera; Neres, Kvaratskhelia; Lukaku

Cagliari had a miserable start to Serie A campaign. The home draw with Roma on Day 1 could be considered as good result, but the home draw with Como and the defeat to Lecce were far from positive results. They sit just outside the drop zone with two points and this match is very important. However, Napoli are not a desirable opponents. The Sardinians have won just one of the last 26 meetings with their current opponents. The lone victory came some 15 years ago, dating all the way back to 2009, under the coach Max Allegri. The last mutual game was played in February and Cagliari managed to stay unbeaten playing an 1:1 draw. Zito Luvumbo scored a stoppage-time equalizer to cancel Osimhen's opening goal. But many things have been changed in the meantime. Most notable, experienced coach Claudio Ranieri retired and was replaced by Davide Nicola. The latter has the majority of his players ready for this game, only Matteo Prati is struggling with an ankle injury. Gianluca Lapadula returned late from international duty with Peru and should start from the bench.

Napoli started the season with a painful 3:0 loss at Hellas Verona. New coach Antonio Conte came under huge pressure, as well as the players. Conte was forced to apology, promising a hard work anad better results in the future. Indeed, his players managed to win the next two fixtures, beating 3:0 Bologna and 2:1 Parma. However, both victories were obtain at home, so this is the first away challenge since Verona. The numbers are not at desired level, Napoli have managed just two Serie A wins on the road since December 2023. The arrival of Romelu Lukaku will definitely help Conte, particularly because Victor Osimhen departed on loan to Galatasaray. The club president Aurelio De Laurentiis wasn't in good relationship with Osimhen and some of the fans are fearing about his cooperation with Conte. The latter has an additional problem as key player Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was forced off by a knock in Georgia's recent UEFA Nations League game against Albania. He is rated as doubtful, though it is expected to be available to start on Sunday.

Cagliari vs Napoli Prediction:

Napoli are favorites in this match, however it won't be easy. As I wrote above, the Vesuvians have managed just two Serie A wins on the road since December 2023. Still, I expect better results with Conte. He is one of the best European tacticians and I expect the third consecutive victory for Napoli. After all, the quality is on Napoli side.

Cagliari vs Napoli Pick: Napoli to win @ 1.82 with Pinnacle

 

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Lazio vs Hellas Verona Preview:

Possible stating lineups:

Lazio:
Provedel; Lazzari, Patric, Romagnoli, Tavares; Rovella, Guendouzi; Tchaouna, Dia, Zaccagni; Castellanos

Hellas Verona:
Montipo; Tchatchoua, Coppola, Dawidowicz, Frese; Belahyane, Duda; Suslov, Harroui, Lazovic; Tengstedt

Lazio will try to secure their second Serie A win when they host Hellas Verona at Stadio Olimpico on Monday evening. So far the season wasn't successful, the capital club have one win, one draw and one defeat in the opening three rounds. Lazio beat Venezia in the first round, but then suffered a narrow defeat at Udinese. Finally, they shared the points with Milan before the international break. Lazio had a 2:1 lead thanks to the goals scored by Taty Castellanos and Boulaye Dia, but the Rossoneri equalized in the finish of the match through Leao. Coach Marco Baroni must improve the results and this is an ideal opportunity. It will be more difficult in the next round when he will visit Fiorentina in his hometown of Florence. Baroni has almost all players available, only Mario Gila is rated as doubtful. According to the medical staff, he has recovered from a thigh injury and may even start in defense. Strikers Taty Castellanos and Mattia Zaccagni should start in attack.

Hellas Verona opened the season in solid way and they have two victories in the first three rounds. The opponents were not easy at all. Verona managed to beat the former champions Napoli with 3:0. Dailon Livramento scored the first goal early in the second half, while Daniel Mosquera scored two more in the finish of the match. The victory had big impact to the players confidence. Before the international break Verona registered another victory, this time against Genoa. The goals were again scored in the second half, but from different players - Jackson Tchatchoua and Casper Tengstedt. In the meantime Verona were beaten by Juventus. Coach Paolo Zanetti is doing a good job and I believe the fans are satisfied. Serbian international Darko Lazovic should also be mention - he already has two assists to his name this season and has registered four against Lazio in his Serie A career. Zanetti has majority of his players available for the trip to the Capital, but Suat Serdar and Juan Manuel Cruz are sidelined due to injury.

Lazio vs Hellas Verona Prediction:

Lazio are undefeated in the last five mutual games with Verona. The Biancocelesti have registered two wins while the remaining three matches finished with draw. Nevertheless, this will be a close match for both teams. Still, I believe Lazio are closer to the victory. The last mutual results are on their side and I expect the successful series to continue. Verona opened the season very good and they have two victories in the first three rounds. However, Lazio have the home advantage, plus the quality is on their side.


Lazio vs Hellas Verona Pick: Lazio to win @ 1.65 with Pinnacle