Monday Night Serie A Update

As expected, Delio Rossi has been relieved of his responsibilties as coach of Palermo the day after his side were beaten 7-0 by Udinese in front of their home fans.

Relations between Rossi and club president Maurizio Zamparini had become strained, and Zamparini ominously reacted to yesterday’s defeat by claiming that “Rossi has destroyed this team.”

Serse Cosmi will tomorrow be unveiled as Rossi’s replacement in Rome, where Palermo train this week ahead of Sunday’s game at Lazio. The experienced Cosmi has previously coached Perugia, Genoa, Udinese, Brescia and, most recently, Livorno.

Cosmi - what celebrity does he resemble?
Answers to delsfootballtips@gmail.com please...

Substitute Kevin Prince Boateng and Alexandre Pato both scored within two minutes to add to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s penalty and to secure victory for AC Milan over Napoli tonight at the San Siro. The Rossoneri were first to settle into the game after a nervous start, while Napoli never appeared to settle but instead turned in a hugely disappointing performance.

The 3-0 win gives Milan a five-point advantage over city rivals Inter, who now occupy second place. Napoli are six points behind Milan in third.

Serie A – week 27 round-up

By the time they kick off at the San Siro this evening, the big game of the weekend will no longer be a battle between first and second in Serie A. Inter edged into second place in the table when they visited Sampdoria last night and won 2-0 thanks to a superb free kick from Wesley Sneijder and a late insurance goal from Samuel Eto’o. This win placed Inter two points behind AC Milan and one point ahead of Napoli, though they have played one game more than their title rivals.

The eye-catching result of the weekend was undoubtedly Udinese’s 7-0 thrashing of Palermo. Alexis Sanchez scored four for the Bianconeri, while Antonio Di Natale climbed to the top of the Serie A goalscoring charts once again thanks to his hat-trick. Di Natale has now scored 21 Serie A goals this season.

Rossi: under pressure at Palermo

Tension between Palermo president Maurizio Zamparini and coach Delio Rossi had bubbled over into the public domain in recent weeks, and after this result Zamparini has been quoted as saying that Rossi has a 1% chance of keeping his job. Rossi himself has vowed to stay, but it seems unlikely that he will still be in charge by the time Palermo visit his old club Lazio next Sunday.

Marco Di Vaio scored twice at Juventus on Saturday evening to bring his tally for the season to 16 and to secure a surprise 2-0 win for Bologna. This was a further blow to Juve’s Champions League ambitions for next season, and Luigi Del Neri may become another coach with an uncertain future if his results don't improve. Meanwhile Bologna climb to the top half of the table on the back of this win.

Lazio’s grip on fourth place was weakened when they lost 1-0 at Cagliari on Sunday. An almost comical own goal from Andre Dias ended a five-game unbeaten run for the Biancoceleste, who are now just a single point ahead of Udinese in the table.

Vincenzo Montella’s home debut as Roma coach looked to be going perfectly as they took a 2-0 lead into the half-time break. For the second time in three games however, the Giallorossi threw away a comfortable lead and Amauri’s two late goals rescued a point for Parma.

A 90th minute Luis Jimenez penalty earned three valuable points for Cesena as they battle to avoid the drop. This 1-0 win over Chievo was their first since they beat Brescia on January 6th. Brescia themselves, like Roma, threw away a two-goal lead and had to settle for a 2-2 draw with fellow relegation candidates Lecce.

Elsewhere, Catania reversed an early lead to beat Genoa 2-1 at the Stadio Massimino, while Bari also came from behind to secure a 1-1 draw and deny Fiorentina their second away win of the season.

The full-time result from the San Siro will be posted below after the game, alongside the other results from series 27. We will return on Friday as usual with previews for next weekend’s games. Til then…

Serie A: week 27 results

AC Milan       3-0      Napoli

Bari             1-1      Fiorentina        

Brescia        2-2      Lecce     

Cagliari        1-0      Lazio      

Catania        2-1      Genoa    

Cesena        1-0      Chievo    

Palermo        0-7      Udinese  

Roma           2-2      Parma    

Sampdoria     0-2      Inter Milan      

Juventus       0-2      Bologna  

AC Milan v Napoli Match Preview and Betting Tips

February 28th 2011, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN)

Monday night’s top of the table clash is undoubtedly the biggest game of the weekend in Serie A. Second-placed Napoli will aim to draw level with Milan at the top of the table in front of an already sold-out San Siro.

“I have no fear in saying that we play the best football in Italy,” announced Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri ahead of the game. While it is Udinese who deserve that accolade in my opinion, there is no arguing with Napoli’s results. Or Walter’s lack of modesty. Mazzarri continued: “on Monday, I will line up a team that will be the best possible according to mental and physical freshness.”

Napoli were knocked out of the Europa League on Thursday night when they lost 2-1 at Villareal. This followed a disappointing European result for Milan, who were beaten 1-0 at home in their first leg Champions League fixture against Tottenham last week. Milan will be the fresher of the two sides however, as their last game was Sunday’s win at Chievo.

A young Antonio Cassano alongside Milan legend Roberto Baggio

Napoli’s successes this season have been built on a mean defence, complimented by the creativity of Ezequiel Lavezzi and Marek Hamsik and the finishing of Edinson Cavani. They will be without the services of the suspended Lavezzi for this game however, and his absence was notable last Sunday when they beat Catania 1-0. Milan will be without some long-term injured absentees, but the in-form trio of Cassano, Pato and Robinho will be available.

Milan’s defenders deserve credit too as they hold the best defensive record in Serie A, having conceded a mere 20 goals so far this season. Napoli have conceded just 22, and so share the second best record with Lazio. This game may decide the destination of the Scudetto, and I expect it to be a tight, cagey affair which could well end scoreless.

Prediction – under 2.5 goals - 7pts

Match odds:    AC Milan                   4/5

                     Draw                       12/5

                     Napoli                     10/3

                     Under 2.5 goals        8/11

AC Milan: Last 5 Serie A Results

20.02.2011 – Chievo 1-2 AC Milan

12.02.2011 – AC Milan 4-0 Parma

06.02.2011 – Genoa 1-1 AC Milan

01.02.2011 – AC Milan 0-0 Lazio

29.01.2011 – Catania 0-2 AC Milan

Napoli: Last 5 Serie A Results

20.02.2011 – Napoli 1-0 Catania

12.02.2011 – Roma 0-2 Napoli

06.02.2011 – Napoli 2-0 Cesena

02.02.2011 – Chievo 2-0 Napoli

30.01.2011 – Napoli 4-0 Sampdoria

Roma v Parma Match Preview and Betting Tips

February 27th 2011, 2pm GMT

Roma put their disastrous collapse at Genoa behind them in midweek by recording their first win since January. The 1-0 win in a rescheduled game at Bologna was their first under caretaker coach Vincenzo Montella.

Roma is in the process of being sold at the moment, and everybody at the club will be keen for matters on the field to run more smoothly than they have been of late. Mexes, Greco and Rosi are suspended for this game, while Adriano, Castellini and Perrotta are injured. Parma’s Marques and Calvo will be also unavailable due to injury.

Is this Vincenzo Montella or actor Cillian Murphy?
Another Serie A celebrity lookalike coach enters the fray...

Parma’s poor run of recent form has consigned them to the batch of struglers in Serie A: they currently sit just four points above the bottom three in the table. However Roma will be eager to show signs of improvement to a home crowd who have not had much to cheer in their last few visits to the Stadio Olimpico. Parma will most likely have to wait a little longer to pick up some much-needed points.

Prediction – Roma -1 (handicap betting) - 3pts

Match odds:    Roma                      8/15

                     Draw                      11/4

                     Parma                     5/1

                     Roma -1                 17/10

Roma: Last 5 Serie A Results

23.02.2011 – Bologna 0-1 Roma

20.02.2011 – Genoa 4-3 Roma

12.02.2011 – Roma 0-2 Napoli

06.02.2011 – Inter 5-3 Roma

02.02.2011 – Roma 1-1 Brescia

Parma: Last 5 Serie A Results

20.02.2011 - Parma 2-2 Cesena

12.02.2011 - AC Milan 4-0 Parma

06.02.2011 - Parma 1-1 Fiorentina

02.02.2011 - Parma 0-1 Lecce

30.01.2011 - Genoa 3-1 Parma

Copenhagen v Chelsea Match Preview and Betting Tips

February 22nd 2011, 7.45pm GMT (live on Sky Sports 2)

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti travels to Copenhagen amid uncertainty about his future at the London club. He will be eager to avoid the same fate as former Chelsea and Roma manager Claudio Ranieri, whose preparations for his Champions League tie took place under a cloud of similar speculation last week.

This is a busy time of the year for clubs who are still involved in European and domestic cup competitions, and Chelsea’s last game was a taxing FA cup tie against Everton on Saturday which went all the way to a penalty shoot-out (which Everton won). Conversely, Copenhagen’s main concern will be a lack of competitive match practice as their domestic winter break means they haven’t played a meaningful fixture since December.

The upside of the Danes’ inactivity is the fact that they will have a full squad to choose from. Chelsea’s new signing David Luiz is cup-tied, while Yossi Benayoun and Alex also miss out due to long-term injuries. Fernando Torres, Nicolas Anelka, Jose Botsingwa and Michael Essien are all expected to start for Chelsea.

Despite their star-studded personnel, something is clearly not right at Stamford Bridge of late. They have returned just a single victory from their last five games, and Ancelotti has already conceded that the Premier League is beyond them this season.

Jesper Gronkjaer faces his former club Chelsea tomorrow

Copenhagen are a well-organised side who currently hold an astounding 19-point lead in their domestic league. They have played six home games in this season’s Champions League and have avoided defeat in all of them, including a 1-1 draw with Barcelona. Therefore the value bet looks like backing Copenhagen to avoid defeat at home again tomorrow against a tired and discordant Chelsea side.

Prediction – Copenhagen +1 (handicap betting) - 5pts

Match odds:    Copenhagen              4/1

                     Draw                       5/2

                     Chelsea                   3/4

                     Copenhagen +1        evens

Related tags: UEFA, Champions League, Match Preview, Predictions, Betting, Chelsea, FC Copenhagen.

Serie A – week 26 round-up

A bizarre turn of events in Genoa was the story of the weekend in Serie A. When Francesco Totti put his side 3-0 up in the 51st minute, Roma must have been certain that they had ended a run of three straight defeats. However when the final whistle sounded Genoa had become the fourth side in a row to beat the Giallorossi, and Roma coach Claudio Ranieri has responded to the result by offering his resignation.

Ranieri - waving goodbye to Roma?

Alexandre Pato came off the bench to score AC Milan’s winner at Chievo, and this 2-1 win maintains Milan’s three point lead at the top of the table. A Zúñiga goal was enough to keep the pressure on Milan by ensuring victory for second-placed Napoli over Catania in the Sunday evening game.

Inter struggled to a 1-0 win over Cagliari at the San Siro on Saturday, a result which keeps them in third place. Two points behind Inter in fourth are Lazio who also won 1-0 at home against Bari.

Juventus suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat at relegation-threatened Lecce, a result which narrows Juve’s chances of playing Champions League football next season. Udinese also dropped points unexpectedly although they maintained their unbeaten record for 2011. Their scoreless draw with Brescia means that the Bianconeri remain in fifth place but they have fallen four points behind Lazio.

Elsewhere Fiorentina and Sampdoria played out another scoreless draw, Parma’s late equaliser ensured that they shared the points with Cesena, while Bologna beat Palermo 1-0.

Til next time...

Serie A – week 26 results

Napoli          1-0      Catania     

Chievo         1-2      AC Milan   

Fiorentina     0-0      Sampdoria

Genoa         4-3      Roma       

Lazio           1-0      Bari  

Lecce          2-0      Juventus   

Parma         2-2      Cesena     

Udinese       0-0      Brescia     

Bologna       1-0      Palermo    

Inter Milan   1-0      Cagliari     

Napoli v Catania Match Preview and Betting Tips

February 20th 2011, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN, Setanta Irl)

When a team maintains a challenge for the Scudetto in the manner that Napoli have this term, most players can take credit – however it is impossible to underestimate the value of a certain €16 million signing from Palermo.

Edinson Cavani’s brace at Roma brought his Serie A goal tally to 20 last Saturday. The current top goalscorer in the league is also a team player however, and his overall contribution has helped Napoli maintain their grip on second place. Their defence also deserves credit, having conceded only a single goal at home in 2011 – and that came in a 2-1 cup win over Bologna.

Skillful Columbian Zúñiga may replace Lavezzi on Sunday

Catania came from behind last week to beat Lecce 3-2, their first win under Diego Simone. The Sicilians have failed to win on the road in a season where they have collected just four points away from the Stadio Angelo Massimino. Catania will face Napoli’s sturdy home defensive unit having only scored seven goals in their twelve away games so far.

Napoli playmaker Ezequiel Lavezzi will be unavailable for this game, as both he and Roma defender Aleandro Rosi were handed three-match bans following a spitting incident during the Azzurri’s win at the Stadio Olimpico last Sunday. Napoli may not create as many chances without Lavezzi, but I expect them to collect three points and to record another clean sheet at the Stadio San Paolo on Sunday evening.

Prediction – Napoli to win to nil – 3pts

Match odds:       Napoli                         2/5

                        Draw                         16/5

                        Catania                       7/1

                        Napoli to win to nil        6/5

Napoli: Last 5 Serie A Results

12.02.2011 – Roma 0-2 Napoli

06.02.2011 – Napoli 2-0 Cesena

02.02.2011 – Chievo 2-0 Napoli

30.01.2011 – Napoli 4-0 Sampdoria

23.01.2011 – Bari 0-2 Napoli

Catania: Last 5 Serie A Results

13.02.2011 – Catania 3-2 Lecce

06.02.2011 – Bologna 1-0 Catania

02.02.2011 – Cesena 1-1 Catania

29.01.2011 – Catania 0-2 AC Milan

22.01.2011 – Parma 2-0 Catania


Related tags: Serie A, Football, Preview, Predictions, Betting, Napoli, Catania, Inter, Milan, Udinese, Brescia, Cagliari, Cavani, Lavezzi, Sneijder, Eto'o, Di Natale, Italian football.

Udinese v Brescia Match Preview and Betting Tips

February 20th 2011, 2.00pm GMT 

The last time Udinese tasted defeat at the Fruilli Stadium was on September 19th last year when they were beaten by Juventus, a loss they have since avenged. Francesco Guidolin's men are a side transformed since their shaky start to the season, and they are unbeaten so far in 2011.

Brescia are third from bottom in Serie A, and their lack of confidence could cause heads to drop if they concede early in Udine. This was the case last week, when Lazio inflicted a first defeat on Brescia since Giuseppe Iachini was reinstated as coach. Udinese are a formidable prospect on home turf, whereas Brescia have drawn one and lost six of their last seven away games.

I think Di Natale may have secretly wanted to be a pilot when he was younger

Regular readers of this site will be familiar with the duel threat of Antonio Di Natale and Alexis Sanchez, and they were both on the mark again last week when Udinese beat Cesena 3-0. Expect them to put a weary Brescia defence through their paces on Sunday, and expect Di Natale to increase his Serie A goal tally once again.

Prediction – Udinese -1 (handicap betting) – 3pts

Match odds:       Udinese             2/5

                        Draw               16/5

                        Brescia             7/1

                        Udinese -1       13/10

Udinese: Last 5 Serie A Results

13.02.2011 – Cesena 0-3 Udinese

05.02.2011 – Udinese 2-0 Sampdoria

02.02.2011 – Udinese 1-1 Bologna

30.01.2011 – Juventus 1-2 Udinese

23.01.2011 – Udinese 3-1 Inter

Brescia: Last 5 Serie A Results

13.02.2011 – Brescia 0-2 Lazio

06.02.2011 – Brescia 2-0 Bari

02.02.2011 – Roma 1-1 Brescia

30.01.2011 – Brescia 0-3 Chievo

22.01.2011 – Palermo 1-0 Brescia

Inter v Cagliari Match Preview and Betting Tips

February 19th 2011, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN)

Cagliari make the trip to the San Siro on the back of an impressive 4-1 demolition of Chievo. Inter responded to their disappointing defeat at Juventus last Sunday by travelling to Fiorentina on Wednesday and beating the hosts 2-1.

Inter’s defeat at Juventus will have worried their supporters as they didn’t really show up for what is one of the biggest derbies in Italian football. They showed some steel in overcoming Fiorentina however, and will hope their victory in that game marks a return to the seemingly unstoppable form they had shown before the derby d’Italia.

Inter have signed a few players during the January transfer window, but of the new additions, Giampaolo Pazzini has immediately surpassed expectations. Joining a team where one is forced to compete with Samuel Eto’o, Diego Milito and Goran Pandev is a daunting prospect for any striker, but Pazzini has made an instant impact. The former Sampdoria hero scored the winner on Wednesday, and has stamped his mark on almost every game he has played in for Inter.

Sneijder may be rested for this game ahead of Inter's midweek Champions League fixture

Key central defender Lúcio makes a return to the Inter starting line-up having missed their last three games due to a muscular injury. The suspended Christian Chivu and injured Diego Milito will miss out however, while Cagliari have a full squad to choose from.

Betting against Cagliari to lose may seem dangerous considering their last result, but the Sardinians are a more fragile unit away from home. I expect Inter to warm up for their midweek Champions League encounter against Bayern Munich by recording an easy win at the San Siro on Saturday.

Prediction – Inter -1 (handicap betting) – 3pts

Match odds:       Inter             2/5

                        Draw           16/5

                        Cagliari        13/2

                        Inter -1         5/4

Inter: Last 5 Serie A Results

16.02.2011 – Fiorentina 1-2 Inter

13.02.2011 – Juventus 1-0 Inter

06.02.2011 – Inter 5-3 Roma

03.02.2011 – Bari 0-3 Inter

30.01.2011 – Inter 3-2 Palermo

Cagliari: Last 5 Serie A Results

13.01.2011 – Cagliari 4-1 Chievo

05.02.2011 – Cagliari 1-3 Juventus

02.02.2011 – Sampdoria 0-1 Cagliari

30.01.2011 – Cagliari 2-1 Bari

22.01.2011 – Roma 3-0 Cagliari

Arsenal v Barcelona Match Preview and Betting Tips

16th February 2011, 7.45pm GMT (live on ITV 1, RTE 2)

This re-run of the 2009/2010 quarter-final is probably the most eagerly anticipated tie of this round in the Champions League. Arsenal held Barca to a 2-2 draw at the Emirates last time, but lost the tie 6-3 on aggregate. Although the general consensus is that the 2011 Arsenal are a tougher prospect, Barca are 1/4 favourites to triumph over two legs.

Walcott: hoping to add a Champions League medal to his Ballon D'Oh™

Barcelona continue to dominate La Liga this season, and they currently top the table five points ahead of second-placed Real Madrid. Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Sporting Gijon ended a record-breaking run of 16 straight league wins, and footballer of the year Lionel Messi has already found the net 24 times in 23 league fixtures. Barcelona will have play this game without captain Carles Puyol however who, along with Jeffren Suarez, has been ruled out due to injury.

Arsenal have improved their domestic form this season, and they are currently in second place in the Premier League, just four points behind Manchester United. Crucially, and unusually, manager Arsene Wenger has almost a full squad to choose from for this fixture. Abou Diaby is the only notable absentee, while playmaker Samir Nasri has been passed fit. Though all eyes will be on their Catalan captain Cesc Fabregas, Robin Van Persie could prove to be the key player for the Gunners on the night. The Dutch striker is in fine form at the moment, with 10 league goals to his name thus far.

This game is too close to call in my opinion. The odds on a Barcelona win are practically identical to those offered on a combination of the draw and an Arsenal win (Arsenal +1). Barcelona will be hungry for Champions League success this season having failed to make the final last year, but Wenger insists that Arsenal “have the belief and a strong togetherness to show we are a different team now.”

Arsenal may well prove to be more of a match for Barca than they were last season, but I believe the only certainty in this game is that there will be goals.

Prediction – over 3.5 goals – 3pts

Arsenal                        3/1

Draw                          13/5

Barcelona                   10/11

Over 3.5 goals             13/8

Roma v Shakhtar Donetsk Match Preview and Betting Tips

16th February 2011, 7.45pm GMT (live on Setanta Irl, Sky Sports 2)

This game marks Shakhtar Donetsk’s debut appearance in the knockout stages of the Champions League. Considering the fact that they are coached by former Inter boss Mircea Lucescu, this encounter with an Italian side will hold no mystery for the 2009 UEFA Cup winners. Match practice and conditioning may be a worry however, as their domestic season finished in November and has yet to resume.

Roma are in the midst of their season, but things haven’t been going too smoothly for them in Serie A of late. In qualifying for this competition last season, they finished second in the league, and pushed champions Inter all the way. As things stand Roma sit in eighth place, 13 points behind the leaders. Coach Claudio Raneiri has publicly stated that he believes he has the backing of his players ahead of this crucial tie, an indication of the weight of expectation at Roma.

Lucescu hopes for a successful return to Italy

Roma have now gone three games without a win, conceding six goals in the process. They lacked any sign of a cutting edge in Saturday’s 2-0 loss to Napoli. The Giallorossi’s problems in this department will be compounded further by the absence of their top scorer Marco Borriello due to a muscular injury. Francesco Totti is likely to start in his absence, but his only match practice since returning from a bout of flu was a few minutes at the end of the Napoli game. Shakhtar centre-back Olexandr Kucher will also miss out due to a knee injury.

The last time these sides met at the Olimpico was when Roma beat Shakhtar 4-0 in the 2006-2007 group stages of this competition. Lucescu believes they have learned from those mistakes: “The Roma fans create a certain pressure on opponents, but also on their own team.” If things are not going Roma’s way this is often the case, and Shakhtar’s fluid, attacking style will cause problems for this Roma defence. Provided they can shake off the rust, the Ukranians could easily cause an upset tomorrow, and I expect them to avoid defeat in Rome.

Prediction – Shakhtar +1 – 3pts

Match Odds:            Roma               10/11

                             Draw                12/5

                             Shakhtar           16/5

                             Shakhtar +1       4/5

Serie A – week 25 round-up

This weekend was a good one for this year’s Serie A title hopefuls, but not so good for the two sides who pushed each other all the way last season.

Leaders AC Milan strolled to a 4-0 home win over Parma yesterday, their goals coming from Cassano, Seedorf and Robinho who scored twice. This will serve as a welcome confidence boost for the Rossoneri ahead of their Champions League tie against Tottenham on Tuesday.

Roma effectively limped out of this season’s title race and lost their unbeaten home record thanks to a toothless performance against second-placed Napoli. Serie A top scorer Edinson Cavani added two more goals to his tally as his side kept the pressure on Milan with a 2-0 win.

Lazio returned to third place by returning to winning ways at Brescia. Álvaro González opened the scoring with his first goal for the Biancoceleste, and Libor Kozák ended the game as a contest by netting the second. This was a clash between two coaches who could also earn a living as celebrity lookalikes, and it was Mickey Goldmill of “Rocky” fame (Edy Reja) who outsmarted Elmer Fudd (Giuseppe Iachini) on the day.

Juventus’ new signing Alessandro Matri was the difference between the sides in the derby d’Italia in Turin. His 30th minute header ensured a 1-0 win for the Old Lady, and dealt a damaging blow to Inter’s hopes of retaining their league title.

Udinese’s European ambitions continued to look credible this week as they visited Cesena and left with all three points. Double-act Di Natale and Sanchez both found the net once again, while Inler also scored during this 3-0 win for the Bianconeri.

Sampdoria ended a poor run of form and eased the pressure on their coach Domenico Di Carlo by beating Bologna 3-1. At the Stadio Renzo Barbera, Palermo led twice at but eventually lost 4-2 in what was Fiorentina’s first away win of the season.

Bari ended a six-game losing run in their first game under new coach Bortolo Mutti, but they failed to score in a stalemate against Genoa. Cagliari put four past Chievo in Sardinia before Thereau netted a consolation goal for the Mussi Volanti. Finally, Catania recorded their first win of 2011 by beating Lecce 3-2 at the Stadio Sant’Elia.

We return on Tuesday when we will preview two of the fixtures in the first knockout phase of this season’s Champions League.

Til then…

                   

Serie A: week 25 results

Palermo       2-4      Fiorentina          

Bari             0-0      Genoa      

Brescia        0-2      Lazio                

Cagliari        4-1      Chievo           

Catania        3-2     Lecce       

Cesena        0-3      Udinese            

Sampdoria    3-1      Bologna            

Juventus      1-0      Inter

AC Milan      4-0      Parma              

Roma          0-2      Napoli