Udinese’s 4-0 defeat at Atletico Madrid yesterday was one of the more eye-catching results of this week’s Europa League fixtures. Francesco Guidolin’s men haven’t conceded very often this season, and although the coach effectively picked a second-string team to line out in Madrid, it was still a surprisingly heavy defeat.
There will be quite a different look to the team which faces Siena on Sunday, as Guidolin attempts to cope with the demands of competing in Europe as well as at home. Like many of the clubs in the Europa League, Udinese’s primary focus is on their domestic campaign. Neither captain Antonio Di Natale nor midfielder Giampiero Pinzi travelled to Madrid, while Kwadwo Asamoah, Mauricio Isla, Dušan Basta and Pablo Armero all started on the bench. All of the above can be expected to start on Sunday.
 |
| Asamoah has been linked with Manchester United this week |
Siena scored four themselves last weekend, capitalising on Chievo’s poor form by beating the Verona side 4-1. They will visit Udinese having made a decent impression so far on their return to Serie A, collecting 13 points from 9 games. Udinese are an experienced top division team however, and they have shown no mercy to the lesser teams they have faced so far this season (their only defeat was to Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo). I expect the Friuli team to win comfortably here, and to maintain their 100% record at home.
Prediction – Udinese to win -1 (handicap betting) – 2pts
Match odds: Udinese 8/13
Draw 5/2
Siena 9/2
Udinese -1 15/8
Udinese -1 15/8
