MY ACCOUNT
Unbeaten Serie A leaders Napoli are in irresistible form — but Jose Mourinho’s resurgent Roma will be aiming to stop the Partenopei in their tracks this Sunday.
Elsewhere, it is second versus fifth as Atalanta look to preserve their own unbeaten run against a dangerous Lazio side.
Meanwhile, reigning champions AC Milan can keep the pressure on at the top when they host mid-table Monza, who have put a little distance between themselves and the relegation zone.
The Rossoneri’s city rivals Inter Milan travel to face Fiorentina, while inconsistent Juventus host Empoli.
Game of the week: Roma vs Napoli (Sunday, 7.45pm)
History appears to be in Napoli’s favour as they bid to extend their winning run in all competitions to 11 games in Rome.
The visitors have lost just one of their last eight meetings with Roma (four wins, three draws).
Additionally, Sunday’s hosts are winless in their last 12 at home in the league against opponents occupying a top-four spot at the beginning of the matchday (seven draws, five defeats).
However, Roma are on a three-game winning streak in Serie A — and Mourinho will be keen to claim four victories on the trot for the first time since arriving in the Italian capital.
These two sides are the league’s set-piece specialists, scoring more goals from dead-ball situations since the start of last season (35 for Napoli, 31 for Roma) than any other team.
Atalanta vs Lazio (Sunday, 5pm)
Atalanta also have an unbeaten run to protect — but Lazio will provide a stern test of their credentials.
The hosts boast a strong record in this fixture having lost just one of their last 10 league games against Lazio (four wins, five draws) and have only claimed more Serie A victories in their history against Bologna (37) than the Biancocelesti (36).
However, Atalanta have conceded more goals against Lazio since Gian Piero Gasperini took over (22) than they have against any other side — so expect another entertaining clash this time around.
These two outfits top the league’s charts for minutes spent in leading positions (402 for Lazio, 397 for Atalanta) and will be hoping to extend their respective records on Sunday.
AC Milan vs Monza (Saturday, 5pm)
AC Milan are third — three points off table-toppers Napoli — and will be keen to avoid a slip-up against Monza.
Encouragingly for the Rossoneri, they have won each of their last six Serie A games at home against promoted sides without conceding.
The last time Milan picked up seven wins from their first 10 league outings as reigning champions was 1992-93 — and they went on to retain the title that year.
Monza may not expect to beat the holders but they can be encouraged by their season so far, with 10 points after 10 games. Only four promoted teams have been relegated from Serie A from that position in the last 20 seasons.
Fiorentina vs Inter Milan (Saturday, 7.45pm)
Inter are enduring a disappointing campaign, sitting seventh after 10 games — but are beginning to inch their way back up the table.
The Nerazzurri are unbeaten in their last 12 meetings with Saturday’s opponents Fiorentina (seven wins, five draws).
Additionally, La Viola are in poor form, having won just three of their last 14 outings (six draws, five defeats) and have only scored eight league goals this term.
Inter have both netted and conceded in each of their last nine Serie A away clashes though, with at least three goals scored in every match during that run (33 total).
Juventus vs Empoli (Friday, 7.45pm)
Juventus are also having a challenging season and will hope to elevate themselves above eighth by beating Empoli.
The Old Lady have lost just one of their last 18 Serie A meetings with their next opponents (15 wins, two draws).
This may be a low-scoring encounter, with Juventus managing five clean sheets this term — conceding only seven times — while Empoli have shipped just 11 goals.
Max Allegri’s men rank third in the league for set-piece strikes with six — but Empoli have only conceded once from such situations this term, the joint-lowest tally in the division.
The weekend’s other games
Salernitana vs Spezia (Saturday, 2pm)
Udinese vs Torino (Sunday, 11.30am)
Bologna vs Lecce (Sunday, 2pm)
Cremonese vs Sampdoria (Monday, 5.30pm)
Sassuolo vs Verona (Monday, 7.45pm)
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