The games are coming thick and fast in Serie A, poor results can be forgotten and momentum can be maintained so off we go for another action-packed gameweek!
We begin with arguably the most intriguing fixture of the schedule where Inter have won 16 of the last 19 games against Fiorentina at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, with the guests having the better in the other three.
The last seven meetings between these two sides have recorded an average of 4.7 goals per game. Hoping to continue that trend will be (still) goal-shy Mauro Icardi who has gone goalless for the opening five match days of the season for the first time since he’s been at Inter.
Next up Udinese’s last home win against Lazio was in April 2013 – since then the Friulani have taken only one point from five games against Lazio. The visitors’ sluggish start has picked up recently and they are on a run of three consecutive league wins – the last time they won four in a row was in October 2017.
Lazio hot-shot Ciro Immobile has also scored six goals in six Serie A appearances against Udinese.
Atalanta have taken only two points from their last four league games – the last time they went winless for five games in a row was in March 2016. Their opponents are also waiting to really kick off their season, Torino have picked up only five points so far this term – last season after five rounds the Granata had won 11 points.
Another struggling side Cagliari have only four points so far this season – this is their worst start to a campaign since 2012/13 when they had won only two after five rounds. Inconsistent Sampdoria won their last away game, 5-0 in Frosinone – previously they had lost five away league games in a row.
Genoa and Chievo have shared four wins apiece and two draws over their last 10 top-flight meetings. The hosts have won only two of their last eight home games against their opponents, drawing one and losing five.
In the only previous Serie A season that Chievo had failed to win in their opening five match-days, they went on to be relegated to Serie B (in 2006/07).
A side not struggling for form are Juventus who have lost only one of their last 12 home matches in Serie A, winning the remaining 11 and keeping seven clean sheets in this period.
Bologna got back to winning ways last weekend against Roma, ending a run of 10 games in which they had taken only two points and scored only three goals.
Title-chasing Napoli have three points fewer than last season after the opening five matchdays and have also scored 10 fewer goals. They can ill-afford for this trend to continue for too long.
This is Parma’s best start to a Serie A campaign since 2009/10 when they had 10 points at this stage – on that occasion they went on to finish 8th in the table.
This is Roma’s worst start to a season since 2010/11, when they also had five points from the opening five matchdays – on that occasion, the Giallorossi ended the campaign in 6th place.
Frosinone have already used 23 different players since start of this campaign – more than any other club. This strategy is not yielding results though as 10 of the 12 goals conceded by Frosinone so far have been in the second half. Perhaps sticking with a regular side may work out better.
SPAL have won their last four home games – only once have they managed to win five in a row at their ground, back in 1968. Opponents Sassuolo have won only three of their last 12 away fixtures, and have conceded goals in 11 of those games.They have also gained seven points from losing positions – more than any other side this season in Serie A. Goals ought to be guaranteed.
Empoli have never beaten AC Milan on home soil in Serie A (D6 L6). This is the visitors worst start to a Serie A campaign since 2013/14, when they had taken only four points from the first four games played. They have also already lost five points from winning positions – more than any other side in the competition.
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com