Serie A Review of week 26, and week 27

Serie A Review of Week 26

Before reviewing last weekend’s action in the Serie A, I would like to congratulate AC Milan for qualifying for the Champions League quarterfinals with a 4-3 aggregate score even though the Rossoneri were punished 3-0 against Arsenal in London. Hopefully, Allegri and his men learn from their mistakes.

Speaking of the Diavoli of Milano, last weekend at the Stadio Renzo Barbera in Palermo, AC Milan crushed the Rosanero with a 4-0 thumping thanks to a Zlatan Ibrahimovic hat trick. Ibra was coming off a 3-game ban. Perhaps he should be suspended more often? Thiago Silva added a goal to the tally.

Internazionale FC took on Catania Calcio at the San Siro in Milan. The Nerazzurri stopped their losing streak with a come-from-behind tie. Catania were leading 2-0 early on in the encounter. Then, the Diegos of Inter took control of the reigns as Diego Milito and Diego Forlan squared it all for the Beneamata.

Juventus remains undefeated with yet another 1-1 tie with Chievo Verona at the Juventus Stadium in Turin.  The Bianconeri are also winless in the last 4 games which includes the Old Lady’s tie in the make-up game against Bologna FC in midweek action.  Juve now trail AC Milan by two points in the Scudetto race.

Udinese – Atalanta ended in a scoreless draw. Atalanta keeper Andrea Consigli made incredible saves to keep the game level.

The Roman Derby, aka the derby of the Capitale. In my opinion, this Derby was ruined! AS Roma’s goalkeeper, Maarten Stekelenburg was sent off in the seventh minute reducing the Giallorossi to 10 men. The Lupi scrapped it out with Lazio but the Biancocelesti still prevailed with a 2-1 win thanks to goals by Hernanes and Stefano Mauri. Italian International youngster, Fabio Borini, temporarily equalised the match for Roma.

WEEK 27 Preview

Two matches have already been played on Firday afternoon as Napoli hosted Cagliari at the San Paolo Stadium and Chievo Verona welcomed winless Inter to the Bentegodi. It was a 9-goal thriller in Naples as Walter Mazzarri’s men ran out victors 6-3. It was Napoli’s sixth consecutive win and is now pushing for a third-place finish. Hopefully this wine will serve as a confidence booster for the crucial game against Chelsea in their upcoming Champions League match. Inter finally ended their winless drought with a 2-0 victory over Chievo Verona. Hopefully, this will instil some much needed confidence in the Nerazzurri for their midweek Champions League return match against Olympique Marseille.

Atalanta host Parma Sunday afternoon at the Stadio Azzurri d’Italia. Roberto Donadoni’s Parma are looking to put their poor form as of late behind them with a must win as the Gialloblu sit one point above the relegation zone.

Palermo v Roma will be an exciting matchup. Both teams will aim to get back up on their feet as the Giallorossi lost a hard fought battle against Lazio last week. The Rosanero were embarrassed at home by Milan and will therefore want to improve their performance in front of their home fans.

Lazio v Bologna. Lazio is aiming for the final Champions league spot but may also push for second as the Biancocelesti are only four points behind Juventus. It will be tough to keep pace against a stubborn Bologna side.

Genoa v Juventus.  The Grifone have had an up-and-down season. At times, Genoa look like they can beat anyone, and at times it’s like they didn’t even show up! Which Genoa will perform in this fixture? Juventus will want to shake off what the Italians call pareggite, which means the tie disease. Juve are still undefeated this season but are levelled with 13 wins and 13 ties. The Bianconeri will be looking to notch up another number in the win column. The Old Lady has tied her last four games. For those who play ProLine, this may very well be Juve’s first loss of the season.

Milan v Lecce. The last time these two teams locked horns, Lecce had a 3-0 lead but then Kevin Prince Boetang took over and scored a hat trick in 15 minutes in the second half with Antonio Cassano bagging the winner. This time around, Lecce is depleted and Milan is upset with what happened in London in midweek. I expect a huge scoreline in Milan’s favour.

THATS THE LASTWORD!

Week 26		04 Mar 2012
Bologna	1 – 0	Novara
Fiorentina	2 – 0	Cesena
Inter	2 – 2	Catania
Juventus	1 – 1	Chievo
Lecce	2 – 2	Genoa
Palermo	0 – 4	Milan
Parma	1 – 2	Napoli
Roma	1 – 2	Lazio
Siena	3 – 0	Cagliari
Udinese	0 – 0	Atalanta

Week 27 11 Mar 2012 (14.00 UK)
Atalanta	Preview	Parma
Catania	Preview	Fiorentina
Cesena	Preview	Siena
Chievo	0 – 2	Inter(Fri 19.45)
Genoa	Preview	Juventus
Lazio	Preview	Bologna(19.45)
Milan	Preview	Lecce
Napoli	6 – 3	Cagliari(Fri 19.45)
Novara	Preview	Udinese(19.45)
Palermo	0 – 1	Roma(Sat 19.45)