MY ACCOUNT
It is top versus bottom in Serie A this weekend as runaway leaders Napoli host winless Cremonese.
Elsewhere, fourth-placed Lazio and Atalanta in fifth are separated by just a point ahead of their mouth-watering clash in the capital.
Inter Milan and Roma will hope to solidify their top-four spots when they travel to Sampdoria and Lecce, respectively.
AC Milan, on the other hand, are enduring a woeful run of form and must turn things around against a promising Torino side at San Siro.
Game of Matchday 22: Napoli vs Cremonese (Sunday, 7.45pm)
Napoli are heading into what appears to be their easiest fixture of the season.
They will certainly be expecting to claim victory in their home clash with Cremonese, who have only picked up eight points all term.
The Partenopei have never lost at home in 14 matches across all competitions against Sunday’s opponents (11 wins, three draws) and are on an eight-game winning streak on their own patch in Serie A.
Luciano Spalletti’s side did suffer a shock Coppa Italia exit on penalties to Cremonese last month however, so should remain cautious.
Lazio vs Atalanta (Saturday, 7.45pm)
Lazio are just one point clear of Atalanta going into this game — should they slump to defeat, their opponents will leapfrog them into the top four.
The Biancocelesti have failed to claim victory in any of their last five home league encounters with La Dea, however (three draws, two defeats).
Maurizio Sarri will rely on Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s strong record of four Serie A goals against Atalanta — he has only scored more against Inter in the competition (five).
But star striker Ciro Immobile is struggling for form, failing to register in any of his last five outings in all competitions.
Gian Piero Gasperini, meanwhile, is contending with an out-of-form centre forward of his own. Duvan Zapata has netted four times against Lazio in Serie A but has managed just one goal in 16 appearances this term.
Sampdoria vs Inter Milan (Monday, 7.45pm)
Second-placed Inter appear unlikely to close the 13-point gap to champions-in-waiting Napoli but they can focus on extending the five-point barrier between themselves and dropping out of the top four.
Positively for the Nerazzurri, they have won nine of their last 11 Serie A meetings with next opponents Sampdoria (one draw, one defeat).
Simone Inzaghi’s men are rarely involved in stalemates, having drawn just one of their previous 30 league games.
Inter may be able to count on their defenders to contribute in front of goal on Monday night — Francesco Acerbi has been involved in more Serie A goals against Samp than any other opponent (four goals, two assists), while Stefan de Vrij has also not scored more against any side in the competition (four).
Lecce vs Roma (Saturday, 5pm)
Roma find themselves third in the table ahead of Matchday 22 but they must secure a positive result against Lecce to guarantee their spot in the top four for another week.
Thankfully for the capital club, they have lost only twice in 33 Serie A games against Saturday’s opponents (23 wins, eight draws), netting in each of their last 19 encounters in the competition.
Jose Mourinho’s men have scored the highest percentage of their goals from set-pieces in the division this season (43%), while Marco Baroni’s side have conceded the highest percentage from such situations (42%).
Paulo Dybala has scored three goals in three Serie A meetings with Lecce, averaging a goal every 72 minutes — his best minutes-to-goal ratio against any opponent in Italy’s top tier.
AC Milan vs Torino (Friday, 7.45pm)
Milan are on a four-game losing streak across all competitions and in desperate need of a positive result to arrest their decline.
Seventh-placed Torino sit just below them in the table but the reigning champions can lean on their strong home record against tonight’s opponents.
The Rossoneri are unbeaten in their last 26 Serie A meetings with the Turin-based side at San Siro (18 wins, eight draws).
Stefano Pioli will hope that Ante Rebic can add to his tally of five league goals against the Granata — his personal best against a single opponent in the competition — and fire his side to a much-needed victory.
The other games on Matchday 22
Empoli vs Spezia (Saturday, 2pm)
Udinese vs Sassuolo (Sunday, 11.30am)
Bologna vs Monza (Sunday, 2pm)
Juventus vs Fiorentina (Sunday, 5pm)
Verona vs Salernitana (Monday, 5.30pm)
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