Serie A Fantasy Preview – Round 38 – Late Games

ATALANTA-MILAN

Atalanta: Duvan Zapata (15 goals, 9 assists) returned to the scoreboard in the past game, snapping out of a minimal three-match drought, while Ruslan Malinovskyi (8/12) once again did a ton of damage, and he has been just the hottest midfielder in the League in the last two months. Robin Gosens showed up as well, bagging his 11th goal of the campaign (plus six assists), while Mario Pasalic tallied his second goal in a row, also adding a helper in the past three matches, even though he mostly features as a sub. An injury has slowed down Luis Muriel (22/8), and Josip Ilicic (6/9) has provided just an assist in the last four appearances. Aleksey Miranchuk (4 goals) has been pretty deadly when they have given him minutes; Sam Lammers would also benefit if they decided to field their bench players. 

Suggested picks: Malinovskyi/Pasalic, Zapata/Miranchuk, Gosens

Milan: they laid a surprising egg against Cagliari given how much they had produced in the previous two games, but the Sardinians successfully clogged up the middle and never allowed them to rev up. This one might be more open-ended. Ante Rebic did not follow up his stellar brace, but he has been a force since moving to false-nine. Brahim Diaz has also benefitted greatly from Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s absence, seeing plenty of minutes and tallying two goals and one assist in the past three games. Hakan Calhanoglu (4/9) instead has not quit his inconsistent ways, but he is central in their design. Among their usual studs, Theo Hernandez (7/5) has resurfaced in a major way with three goals in the last four fixtures, while Franck Kessie (11/4) was among those who feasted in the Torino romp.

Suggested picks: Rebic, Brahim Diaz, Hernandez.

 

BOLOGNA-JUVENTUS

Bologna: Rodrigo Palacio’s late renaissance continued in the Verona game, where he found the target for the fourth time in the last four games, considering though he had a hat-trick four rounds ago. Roberto Soriano is suspended for this one, so there is little doubt Emanuel Vignato (1/4) is going to pull the strings. They will have to lean heavily on their other playmakers, especially Musa Barrow (8/8), who has fallen back into a slump as he has not produced in the last five matches. Riccardo Orsolini (6/3) netted their only other recent goal, but both he and Andreas Skov Olsen (2/2) remain boom-or-bust, and neither has gained a ton of momentum. Nicola Sansone (2/2) has been lively whenever called upon. Musa Juwara could be an option if they decide to go young.

Suggested picks: Palacio, Vignato, Orsolini/Skov Olsen.

Juventus: Juan Cuadrado shined against Inter, finally finding the target (twice) after providing a slew of assists in a remarkable campaign. Cristiano Ronaldo tapped it home after missing a PK to improve to 29 goals in the season, securing his capocannoniere title. The recent winner of the duel between Alvaro Morata (9/9) and Paulo Dybala (4/2) has actually been Dejan Kulusevski (4/2), who has looked impressive as a trequartista in a tweaked formation. He was brilliant in the Coppa Italia final and set up a teammate two games back versus Sassuolo. Dybala has done a little better and has been used more than Morata in recent fixtures. Adrien Rabiot (3/2) has concocted a string of convincing performances in League play.

Suggested picks: Ronaldo, Kulusevski, Cuadrado.

 

NAPOLI-VERONA

Napoli: Lorenzo Insigne (19/7) and Piotr Zielinski (8/10) powered them against Fiorentina, but it was not a great fantasy day for neither because the former missed a PK, and the former was not credited for the goal due to a major deflection. The Polish ace was coming off two straight matches with a goal and an assist, and he has been brilliant in recent months. The Italian winger instead has found the target four times and provided two assists in the last six outings. Victor Osimhen (10/2) has been relatively silent in the past two after a sizzling run. Matteo Politano (9/2) and Hirving Lozano (11/3) are both faring well out on the right wing, and playing time is not a discriminating factor in their cases. Fabian Ruiz has launched some positive signals lately, while Giovanni Di Lorenzo (3/6) has been a not-so-small threat for most of the campaign.

Suggested picks: Osimhen, Insigne, Zielinski.

Verona: they exploited the relaxed nature of the Bologna match to get right offensively, as they had not bagged two goals in some time. Nikola Kalinic (2 goals) finally broke out of his drought, and he is an ideal linchpin for how they play, but he just has not been healthy. He should get another start over the lukewarm Kevin Lasagna (4/1). Their star Antonin Barak is suspended, which will open the door for Daniel Bessa or Eddie Salcedo (2 goals), with the latter driving decisively more fantasy value. They will probably also lean more on Mattia Zaccagni (6/5), who has not been able to get out of his lull. Marco Davide Faraoni registered his third goal versus the Felsinei, plus seven assists, while Darko Lazovic set up Kalinic to improve to six helpers. The flank game, where also Federico Dimarco (5/3) is a mammoth factor, is the engine of their offense.

Suggested picks: Kalinic, Lazovic, Salcedo/Zaccagni. 

 

SASSUOLO-LAZIO

Sassuolo: they predictably exploited the date with Parma, but not with their usual recent studs, as Domenico Berardi only teed up a teammate, and Giacomo Raspadori did not score, but rather with rediscovered contributors such as Jeremie Boga (4/2) and Gregoire Defrel (3/3), who had not hit the net in months. They can both be very streaky. Raspadori is a little hurt, so either the Frenchman or Francesco Caputo (11/5), or both, will lead the attack in this one, and the veteran striker had some flashes versus the Ducali. Berardi (16/6) has been a constant force since returning from injury, while Filip Djuricic is in a rut and outperformed by Hamed Traore (5/2). Manuel Locatelli has shown up big time twice in a row with a goal and an assist, improving to four a two in the categories in the season.

Suggested picks: Berardi, Boga, Defrel/Caputo.

Lazio: they are coming off two scoreless matches, as they could not perforate Roma’s defense nor Torino’s one despite laying siege for a long time. They will be severely undermanned in this one because Luis Alberto and Andreas Pereira are suspended, and Ciro Immobile, Felipe Caicedo, and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic are all likely out. They will be down to just Joaquin Correa (8/3) and Vedat Muriqi (one goal) as offensive options, and the Kosovar has been underwhelming, to say the least. Jean-Daniel Akpa Akpro (one assist) and Manuel Lazzari (2/5) will have prominent roles and also Senad Lulic could be a sneaky option, but the scenario is quite bleak.

Suggested picks: Correa, Muriqi, Lazzari. 

 

SPEZIA-ROMA

Spezia: at last, M’Bala Nzola broke out of his four-month slump in a pivotal clash, downing Torino with a brace to secure the permanence in Serie A. He moved to 11 goals in the campaign. After dealing with multiple injuries, Riccardo Saponara is finishing strong with two goals in the last four rounds, seriously threatening Emmanuel Gyasi’s minutes. Diego Farias is suspended for this week, opening up minutes for Gyasi (4/6), Daniele Verde (1/5), or Kevin Agudelo (1/2). Verde has been the best of the bunch recently. Tommaso Pobega (5 goals) has returned to his early-season form, re-taking the mantle as their best midfielder away from Luca Maggiore (3/1).

Suggested picks: Nzola, Saponara, Verde/Gyasi.

Roma: they finally come up big in a crunch match, besting Lazio thanks to a neat combination between Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan and a wondergoal by Pedro. The Armenian ace (12/10) has notched three goals and two assists in the last three matches, while the Bosnian striker (7/3) has dished two assists in a row, fending off the competition of Borja Mayoral (10/2). Pedro instead had not hit the net in ages. Lorenzo Pellegrini is suspended this week, so he and Stephan El Shaarawy should be heavily featured. Rick Karsdorp (1/6) and Bryan Cristante (1/3) have gained some value due to their several meaningful absences.

Suggested picks: Mkhitaryan, Dzeko, Pedro.

 

TORINO-BENEVENTO

Torino: they held for dear life in the match against Lazio, taking home the point they were looking for and neutralizing this match. Andrea Belotti (13/6) broke out of a slump versus Spezia with a PK, while Antonio Sanabria has been quiet over the last six outings. Simone Zaza (6 goals) and Federico Bonazzoli will likely be given an opportunity in this one. They could decide to rest several of their top contributors, starting with Cristian Ansaldi (1/6), who has been instrumental with his assists in recent matches. Simone Verdi (1/4) instead has come off the bench twice and could be part of the XI, looking for the goal that has eluded him for a long time. Even if starting, Karlo Linetty and Sasa Lukic have less appeal than Rolando Mandragora (3/1). Amer Gojak would be more intriguing, but he is iffy. Wilfried Singo has not been great on the flank after dealing with a pair of injuries.

Suggested picks: Belotti/Bonazzoli, Zaza, Verdi.

Benevento: Gianluca Lapadula (8/2) scored again versus Crotone, making it four in the last six rounds, but it was still a small offensive haul and especially insufficient to take home the three points they needed to stay alive. They have several injuries throughout the roster, so they would have to go with some Primavera players if they wanted to spare their starters. Adolfo Gaich is likely a good bet to be involved, but he has been underwhelming in the recent displays. Nicolas Viola (5/3) has quieted down in the last three matches but remains one of their top options. Gaetano Letizia (3 goals), Roberto Insigne (2/4), and Riccardo Improta (one goal) are set to have major usage depending on what scheme they use.

Suggested picks: Lapadula, Viola, Gaich/Insigne.

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