Serie A Fantasy Preview – Round 16 – Top Matches

CROTONE-ROMA

Crotone: they tried to keep up with Inter on Sunday thanks to the first goals in Serie A of Niccolò Zanellato and Vladimir Golemic, but they ultimately ended up being overwhelmed. Junior Messias showed up with an assist, his first one, while he has found the target five times. Emmanuel Riviere is taking playing time away from Simy, but neither has been very prolific or really dangerous. Given the role, it is unlikely that Zanellato will turn into a fantasy weapon: in the midfield Salvatore Molina (one goal, four assists) and Milos Vulic surely have more value, while left-back Arkadiusz Reca (one goal and five helpers) has been a valuable reference point on the flank.

Recommended picks: Messias, Molina, Simy/Riviere.

Roma: after multiple attempts, they finally cracked Sampdoria late with Edin Dzeko’s fourth goal in the last five matches. With seven total in Serie A play, he has now caught up with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who has for a long time being their most consistent player, but now has to pass the baton to the striker as he has been quiet for a couple of matches in a row. Jordan Veretout has hit the net seven times as well, but mostly on PKs. Rick Karsdorp’s resurgence continued with another helper, the fourth one in the season and the third in the last five games, and, sans Leonardo Spinazzola, they have relied more on the right flank. Lorenzo Pellegrini has scored twice while featuring as attacking midfielder in lieu of Pedro, who is hurt. It is certainly a ripe match-up given the Pitagorici’s lax defense. Dzeko might be preserved in this one ahead of the Milan clash: Borja Mayoral has not done so much, but the match-up is tasty, while Mkhitaryan would likely be their main scoring threat. 

Recommended picks: Mkhitaryan, Dzeko/Mayoral, Pellegrini.

 

LAZIO-FIORENTINA

Lazio: they had a decent first half again Genoa, where Ciro Immobile recorded his tenth goal through a PK, while the second one was quite confusing and they had to settle for a draw. Luis Alberto was coming off two goals in a row but was held in check, while Felipe Caicedo (four goals), who filled in for the injured Joaquin Correa, drew a PK but had numbered chances and is generally better coming off the bench. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (three goals, five assists) has been their most reliable guy behind the Golden Boot winner. Vedat Muriqi might get a shot but he has been unconvincing thus far, while Andreas Pereira’s playing time has been spotty. Manuel Lazzari and Adam Marusic are secondary options. Immobile is slightly banged up and could be replaced by Andreas Pereira: if that will indeed be the case, Caicedo’s stocks would skyrocket. 

Recommended picks: Immobile/Caicedo, Milinkovic-Savic, Alberto.

Fiorentina: they could not follow up the win over Juventus with another fully satisfactory showing and they had troubles coming up with credible offense even though Bologna are not certainly a formidable defensive team. The liveliest guy was Gaetano Castrovilli, who had his best showing in a while, while Dusan Vlahovic, who was coming off four goals in a row, was engulfed and Franck Ribery had just a pair of flashes. Cristiano Biraghi (one goal, five assists) will be back from a suspension and he has been one of their main weapons, which is a little concerning. Christian Kouame, Giacomo Bonaventura and José Callejon need more playing time to become options: they only one with some chances of that happening in short order is the ex-Milan man.

Recommended picks: Vlahovic, Castrovilli, Ribery.

 

SAMPDORIA-INTER

Sampdoria: they predictably did not do a whole lot offensively against Roma because of the caliber of the opponents, but they stayed in the game until the final whistle. They will not be in a much better spot this week even though Inter does at times give up some goals. In any case, Fabio Quagliarella (seven scores) is poised to be again their leading man, while Valerio Verre had a little dud on Sunday and so he has not fully shaken the competition coming from Gaston Ramirez and Antonino La Gumina, but the coach has gone back and fourth in that role and Balde Keita, while unlikely to start, is available in this one. Antonio Candreva has mended fences with the coach and the previous hierarchies, which saw him ahead of Mikkel Damsgaard, have been restored. Candreva was one of the most involved men in Roma has dished four assists so far, on top of scoring once; two goals and two helpers instead for the Danish youngster. Jakub Jankto has been their second most productive contributor fantasy wise, even though he is not super consistent.

Recommended picks: Quagliarella, Jankto, Candreva.

Inter: they took full advantage of the creampuff match-up with Crotone and Lautaro Martinez destroyed the opponents with a hat-trick, moving to nine goals in Serie A play in the season, plus Romelu Lukaku (12 goal) punched in one more and Achraf Hakimi kept it up, finding the target for the fifth time in the year and the second in the past three matches, where he has also set up a teammate. Marcelo Brozovic recorded an assist for the second game in a row and he is rising in that category. Nicolò Barella is fading in the fantasy game because of few quiet outings in a row, so Brozovic could soon become their top midfielders, while Arturo Vidal has never really been a good option and Stefano Sensi and Christian Eriksen do not play enough. Lukaku is banged up, but Alexis Sanchez did not come off the bench Sunday as he was coming off an injury, so the next man up might end up being Ivan Perisic, but there is some early optimism on the big Belgian.

Recommended picks: Martinez, Hakimi, Lukaku/Sanchez.

 

NAPOLI-SPEZIA

Napoli: it took them a while but they eventually figured out a way around the Cagliari defense. Piotr Zielinski dragged them through the mud with a superb brace, then Hirving Lozano and Lorenzo Insigne finished the opponents off for a much-needed win after a negative spell. Since Andrea Petagna is not the most consistent striker, the trio will continue to carry the load while Dries Mertens and Victor Osimhen recover from their injuries. El Chucky has netted seven goals, Insigne six and both have had a pair of assists. Matteo Politano has had some decent success off the bench (three goals/three assists).

Recommended picks: Lozano, Insigne, Zielinski.

Spezia: they were unable to bend the vaunted Verona’s back-line, which is something that happens to the best of them, and M’Bala Nzola (seven goals) wasted his lone scoring opportunity, while the late surge to try to tie it was a little disjointed. As stated by the coach, they need somebody else to step up scoring-wise to help out the center-forward as Diego Farias has hit the net twice and Emmanuel Gyasi and Kevin Agudelo once each, which is a little low for their production. They will not have two of their main playmakers Matteo Ricci and Simone Bastoni due to COVID and their replacements are not at the same level. Tommaso Pobega returned to the XI after a while versus Verona and he did okay.

Recommended picks: Nzola, Gyasi, Pobega

 

MILAN-JUVENTUS

Milan: they took home a veteran win in Benevento thanks to the fifth goal of the season by Franck Kessie and a gem by Rafael Leao, who found the target for the fourth time, the second in the last four fixtures. The Portuguese starlet can be a little frustrating at times but is also capable of major highlights. Hakan Calhanoglu and Ante Rebic had found paydirt in the previous match therefore their front-line is in good shape even without Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Both have been great assist-men. Brahim Diaz started off well Sunday but then was taken out because of the early red card: he is surely a more appealing option than Samu Castillejo. Theo Hernandez is back from suspension and he has been a force to be reckoned with.

Recommended picks: Rebic, Calhanoglu, Leao.

Juventus: they somehow jogged their way to four goals versus Udinese thanks to some blunders by the adversaries, which allowed Cristiano Ronaldo to assemble a brace and pull away a little in the capocanniere chart as he is at 14 goal. Alvaro Morata was a late scratch and the coach said that he is unlikely to be back in this one. Paulo Dybala was not great overall but netted a late goal, his second in Serie A play, while Federico Chiesa produced another good outing and found the target for the second time in the last four rounds. Aaron Ramsey resurfaced after a lull with an assist and also Rodrigo Bentancur contributed in that regard. Federico Bernardeschi or Dejan Kulusevski might get a spot start given the COVID outbreak, but their appeal hinges or the role. 

Recommended picks: Ronaldo, Chiesa, Dybala.

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