CAGLIARI-SAMPDORIA
Cagliari: they were again productive on the offensive end as Giovanni Simeone and Joao Pedro both found the target, registering respectively the fifth and the fourth goal of their campaigns, but some defensive problems did them in versus Bologna. While Riccardo Sottil had scored in the previous game, Adam Ounas came off the bench really well and could get an opportunity to start in this one. Nahitan Nandez has enjoyed a more offensive role but has yet to post goal or an assist, while Marko Rog and Razvan Marin’s contribution in the final third is limited, even though the ex-Ajax could make up for it with his set piece prowess. Their fullbacks have both been very good, as Charalampos Lykogiannis has found the net once and Gabriele Zappa has provided two assists.
Recommended picks: Simeone, Pedro, Ounas.
Sampdoria: their run got interrupted by Genoa, who succeeded in mucking up their game-plan, holding them to one goal as Jakub Jankto hit the net for the second match in a row. Fabio Quagliarella’s had hit the net in the previous three contests. Antonio Candreva is reportedly feeling better and that should move the spicy Mikkel Damsgaard back to the bench, but he is safe also in short minutes. Gaston Ramirez is coming off the first assist of the season and that should allow him to stave off the competition coming from Balde Keita, who is also said to be banged up. Tommaso Augello has been a menace, while Bartosz Bereszynski rarely ventures forward.
Recommended picks: Quagliarella, Jankto, Ramirez.
BENEVENTO-SPEZIA
Benevento: Gianluca Lapadula found the target for the third time against Verona, on top of tallying two assists, but they will not have his partner in crime Gianluca Caprari in this one due to a red card. It would be a decent boost if Iago Falque recovered and filled in for the teammate, as having both him and Roberto Insigne, who scored two games ago, would be better than using one among Marco Sau, Andres Tello and Riccardo Improta. Artur Ionita and Bryan Dabo did a little more in the final third versus Verona and the match-up here is easier so their two midfielders and the fullbacks Gaetano Letizia and Daam Foulon, who are always sprightly, could be worth a flier. They have not unleashed Nicolas Viola yet after his knee surgery.
Recommended picks: Lapadula, Insigne, Ionita.
Spezia: they lasted about a half against Juventus and as always showed their best stuff on the offensive end, with Tommaso Pobega putting one past the goalie for his first Serie A goal on a dish by Paolo Bartolomei, who however fractured a toe and will not be present here. M’Bala Nzola has been pretty decent while replacing Andrej Galabinov: he has not hit paydirt but provided one assist. Diego Farias has outperformed Emmanuel Gyasi on the left flank, while Kevin Agudelo and Daniele Verde have been neck-and-neck on the right one and both have put their names in the stat-sheet once in the last three appearances. Giulio Maggiore could be back from COVID and has intriguing appeal. Simone Bastoni and Salvador Ferrer are both pretty offensive-minded fullbacks.
Recommended picks: Nzola, Farias, Agudelo.
PARMA-FIORENTINA
Parma: Gervinho finally came alive, leading them to a precious tie with Inter, where they were literally pipped at the post. Andreas Cornelius suffered a new injury, but Roberto Inglese was cleared last-minute before the last game and he served an assist. Yann Karamoh is seeing limited minutes despite his effectiveness (one goal, one assist). Hernani, who had not hit the net last season, has done it twice already, on top of setting up a teammate. Their top midfielders, the other being Juraj Kucka and Jasmin Kurtic, have taken turn in doing damage in the final third, while Wylan Cyprien is coming along slowly.
Recommended picks: Gervinho, Inglese, Hernani.
Fiorentina: Giuseppe Iachini deployed a light attack against Roma, feauting José Callejon and Franck Kessie, but the results were rather poor and the Spaniard is ways away from having an acceptable physical condition. Since neither of their strikers (Christian Kouame, Dusan Vlahovic and Patrick Cutrone) has been reliable and Ribery has not been great after an injury, their most consistent contributors have been Gaetano Castrovilli (four goals, one assist) and Cristiano Biraghi (one goal, three assists). Pol Lirola has been pretty good as well, while Giacomo Bonaventura has lost a step compared to the resumption. Among their forwards, Vlahovic has looked the best in recent outings, but has not really taken the brass ring.
Recommended picks: Castrovilli, Biraghi, Vlahovic.
GENOA-ROMA
Genoa: Rolando Maran has implemented a new tactic in the last couple of matches, moving away from 3-5-2 for a better-looking 4-3-2-1 that frees up Miha Zajc from heavy defensive tasks, but he has been unimpressive so far, also due to COVID. Gianluca Scamacca has been the one benefitting the most as he scored in two matches in a row, fed by Goran Pandev in the late goal versus Torino. The role of the Macedonian veteran does not change much. The other recent development has been the ascendence of Nicolò Rovella, who could also have some fantasy upside since he is a good passer and shooter. Lukas Lerager has been so-so but he recently had an assist. It may turn out to be match-up based, but the coach did not shy away from fielding his most aggressive fullbacks, Paolo Ghiglione and Luca Pellegrini, in the midweek tilt despite the four-man defence.
Recommended picks: Scamacca, Pandev, Zajc.
Roma: differently from so many other sides, the Giallorossi are very consistent when it come to their top players as Pedro has demonstrated to be a quality finisher and found the target three times, same haul for Edin Dzeko after getting out of his initial funk, Jordan Veretout (four goals) has been money from the penalty kick spot, while Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Lorenzo Pellegrini feature more in creative role and the Armenian forward has furnished five assists already. However, Dzeko got COVID, so either Borya Mayoral will slide into the big shoes as he has done in Europa League (with mixed results), or they will move Mkhitaryan and Pellegrini to more offensive roles, boosting both of their fantasy stocks. The always lively Leonardo Spinazzola knocked one on goal in the last game. They have been pretty stout in the back.
Recommended picks: Pedro, Mkhitaryan, Mayoral
TORINO-CROTONE
Torino: the Granata cashed in on their recent progress with a much-need win over Genoa in the make-up game, quickly washing away the bitter taste for the late-game collapse versus Lazio. Wednesday’s fixture was just the second one, after the opener, where Andrea Belotti did not score, but only because Luca Pellegrini beat him to the punch for an own goal. While Simone Verdi has been seesawing even while featuring as second-striker, and it would not be surprising if they went back to Federico Bonazzoli, Sasa Lukic has been tremendous as no.10 and hit the net in three consecutive outings. Amer Gojak saw his first start, as box-to-box, but did no much, so Soualiho Meite is set to hold onto the starting job even though he has been rather underwhelming. Karol Linetty instead has fared better and has found the target recently. Right-back Mergim Vojvoda has tallied two assists. They will be facing a very lousy defence.
Recommended picks: Belotti, Lukic, Linetty.
Crotone: Simy added one more goal, moving to there in the year, but, despite the pretty close result, they did not generate much offense against Atalanta and were mostly outplayed. The absence of Salvatore Molina in the midfield is significant as they lose a good dose of dynamism that Milos Vulic and Nicolò Zanellato are not really able to compennsate for because of their different traits, although the Serbian midfielder is a good ball handler. Ahmad Benali is still paying the price for his calf injury and has been a non-factor in his first two appearances: he is bound to improve over time, but it could be awhile. Junior Messias is effervescent, but not the most clinical striker out there. Arkadiusz Reca has been more than serviceable out on the left wing.
Recommended picks: Simy, Messias, Vulic.
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