Serie A - round 38 results

AC Milan         2-1       Novara       

Catania          0-2       Udinese      

Cesena          2-3       Roma         

Chievo           1-0       Lecce         

Fiorentina       0-0       Cagliari       

Genoa            2-0       Palermo     

Juventus        3-1       Atalanta     

Lazio             3-1       Inter

Napoli            2-1       Siena

Parma            1-0       Bologna

Parma v Bologna Match Preview and Betting Tips

Sunday 13th May, 5pm GMT

Newly-crowned league champions Juventus aside, these two are the form teams in Serie A - possibly because they are basking in mid-table safety and are enjoying the opportunity to play without pressure.

Parma’s current record of six consecutive wins is their best run ever in Serie A, while visitors Bologna have won their last three and are unbeaten in their last seven league games. Champions League contenders Napoli were Bologna’s latest victims – Mazzarri’s men suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara last weekend.

Giovinco and Floccari: forming a successful partnership at Parma

Though it is risky to bet against a team with Bologna’s current unbeaten record, they are less formidable on the road than at home. Their defenders are likely to struggle to contain Sebastian Giovinco, whose inspired form has been the driving force behind Parma's recent successes. Striker Sergio Floccari has also become an important part of Roberto Donadoni’s team since the former Italy boss took charge in January.

Parma have recently beaten top six teams such as Lazio and Inter at the Stadio Ennio Tardini, and I believe that they are well capable of finishing the season with another home win over Bologna.

Prediction – Parma to win – 5pts

Match odds:            Parma           5/6

                             Draw             9/4

                             Bologna        10/3

Serie A - round 37 results

Atalanta         0-2       Lazio

Bologna         2-0       Napoli        

Cagliari          0-2       Juventus     

Inter             4-2       AC Milan     

Novara          3-0       Cesena       

Palermo         4-4       Chievo       

Siena            0-2       Parma        

Udinese         2-0       Genoa        

Lecce            0-1       Fiorentina   

Roma            2-2       Catania

Serie A - round 36 results

(played in midweek)

AC Milan         2-0       Atalanta     

Catania          0-1       Bologna      

Cesena          0-1       Udinese      

Fiorentina       2-2       Novara       

Genoa            2-1       Cagliari       

Juventus        1-1       Lecce         

Lazio             1-1       Siena

Parma            3-1       Inter

Chievo           0-0       Roma         

Napoli            2-0       Palermo

Serie A - round 35 results

Atalanta        2-0       Fiorentina   

Bologna        3-2       Genoa        

Inter             2-1       Cesena       

Lecce            1-2       Parma        

Novara          0-4       Juventus     

Siena            1-4       AC Milan     

Udinese         2-0       Lazio

Cagliari          0-0       Chievo       

Palermo         1-1       Catania      

Roma            2-2       Napoli

Roma v Napoli Match Preview and Betting Tips

Saturday 28th April 2012, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN)

It would be misleading to describe the battle for third place in Serie A this season as fierce. While Milan and Juventus go toe-to-toe for the Scudetto, streets ahead of the rest, Lazio and Udinese seem almost reluctant to finish third. This is good news for Napoli and Inter (and possibly even Roma), who are now also becoming interested in the prospect of Champions League qualification.

Napoli recently suffered three defeats in a row, but they have revived their flagging league campaign with back-to-back wins over relegation candidates Novara and Lecce. Wednesday’s 2-0 win at Lecce was impressive as it ended the hosts’ six-match unbeaten run, but more importantly for Walter Mazzari it brought his side to within a point of Lazio and closer to participation in the Champions League for the second season running.

"El Pocho," seen here scoring against Chelsea, returns to the bench for Napoi tomorrow

Roma’s “experiment” under Luis Enrique was always expected to take time, but even the most patient Roma fans must be tiring of following their team’s woes. They have suffered more defeats than any other team in the top half of the table, and they have huge problems with both their defending and their discipline. Just as Bojan Krkic and Maarten Stekelenburg return from suspension for this game, Danielle De Rossi, Pablo Osvaldo and Eric Lamela miss out due to suspension. Lamela misses three of Roma’s remaining four games for spitting on Stephan Lichtsteiner during Juventus’ recent win over Roma. Classy.

Napoli defender Hugo Camagnaro is unavailable due to injury, but Goran Pandev returns from suspension and Ezequiel Lavezzi is expected to make the bench following his recent thigh injury.

Roma’s home record is far more respectable than their away form, and though they recorded an impressive 3-1 win in Napoli already this season I can’t see them repeating that achievement tomorrow. Expect Napoli to keep up the pressure on Roma’s rivals in a game which should see a few goals.

Prediction – Napoli to win – 5pts

Match odds:            Roma            6/4

                             Draw            11/5   

                             Napoli           7/4

Serie A - round 33 results

AC Milan        1-0       Genoa        

Cesena          0-1       Juventus     

Lecce            0-2       Napoli        

Novara          2-1       Lazio

Palermo         1-2       Parma        

Roma            1-2       Fiorentina   

Siena            1-1       Bologna      

Udinese         1-3       Inter            

Atalanta        1-0       Chievo       

Cagliari          3-0       Catania

Novara v Lazio Match Preview and Betting Tips

Wednesday 25th April 2012, 11.30am GMT (live on ESPN)

This game was originally scheduled to take place on Sunday 15th April, but it was postponed along with every other Serie A game from this round due to the tragic death of Piermario Morrosini on Saturday 14th.

I tipped Lazio to win the originally scheduled fixture, and I’m sticking with that prediction. Although midfielder Hernanez seems to have picked up a season-ending injury, Stefano Mauri will return from his one-game suspension to provide support for Tommaso Rocchi up front. Indeed given recent form, Mauri is a far better option than the Brazilian, who had been disappointing this season and whose mind appears to be elsewhere. Key defender Andre Dias is also available once again following his recent injury.

Will Mauri continue his recent run of rich goalscoring form tomorrow?

Lazio may have thrown away two points by conceding a late equaliser against Lecce on Sunday, but with just five games remaining they still have a genuine chance of holding on to third place. If they are serious about this target however they really need to be beating teams like Novara (who effectively have nothing to play for), and I think Edy Reja is too good a coach to allow his team to slip up twice in three days.

You can read my match preview for the originally scheduled fixture HERE.

Prediction – Lazio to win – 6 points

Match odds:            Novara          15/4

                             Draw            23/10 

                             Lazio             3/4

Serie A - round 34 results

Round 33 fixtures were postponed last weekend as mentioned previously, and they will take place tomorrow and Wednesday. In the meantime, here are the results from this weekend.

AC Milan        1-1        Bologna     

Cesena          2-2        Palermo    

Fiorentina      0-0        Inter

Genoa           1-4        Siena        

Juventus        4-0        Roma        

Lazio             1-1        Lecce        

Catania          2-0        Atalanta    

Chievo           0-0        Udinese     

Napoli            2-0        Novara      

Parma            3-0        Cagliari

Catania v Atalanta Match Preview and Betting Tips

Saturday 21st April 2012, 7.45pm GMT


Catania’s first season under coach Vincenzo Montella can already be marked down as a success – having begun the season with the stated aim of Serie A survival, the Sicilians sit in eighth place in the table and are just three points short of their all-time record in the top flight with six games remaining. Catania president Antonio Pulvirenti displayed his satisfaction with Montella's work this week by confirming that the coach will remain in the hot seat next season.


Atalanta will also be satisfied with their achievements this season. The Bergamo side are in tenth place, three points behind Catania. Indeed, had they not started the season with a six-point deficit (punishment for involvement in match –fixing) they would be challenging for Europa League qualification. Coach Stefano Colantuono was rewarded with a new contact in February, which secures his position for the next two campaigns.

Maxi Morales may be the smallest player in Serie A but he's proving a big hit with Atalanta fans

The visitors ended a mediocre run of form last time out by winning away at Napoli, while Catania suffered a rare home defeat to Lecce – an extraordinary result considering the fact that they were winning 1-0 with just two minutes of normal time remaining. The Stadio Angelo Massimino is the proverbial fortress however, and Inter, Lazio and Napoli have all tasted defeat here this season (while Juventus and Milan both had to settle for a draw).


Catania goalkeeper Juan Pablo Carrizo is unavailable due to his sending-off against Lecce, while Atalanta's top scorer German Denis is also suspended. The Nerazzurri do possess enough quality in their ranks to cause problems for the Sicilian hosts, but considering their solid home record I think Catania are worth a small bet tomorrow.


Prediction – Catania to win – 3pts


Match odds:    Catania       23/20
                     Draw           7/4
                     Atalanta       3/1

All of this weekend's Serie A fixtures postponed

All of the Serie A games scheduled for this weekend have been postponed following the sad death of Piermario Morosini who was playing for Livorno in a Serie B game yesterday afternoon. R.I.P.

Novara v Lazio Match Preview and Betting Tips

Sunday 15th  April 2012, 11.30am GMT (live on ESPN)

Throughout the course of the season I have found that picking Lazio to win has been a minefield, because one never knows which Lazio will show up. I picked them to beat Parma a couple of weeks back – which they should have been able to do in second gear – and they were absolutely terrible on the night. I have watched their two games since that defeat however, and I have seen enough to convince me that they’re worth backing to beat Novara at almost evens.

While Novara are resigned to a Serie B campaign next season, Lazio are still in pole position for third place (and the Champions League qualification which comes with it) despite their narrow defeat at league-leaders Juventus on Wednesday night. They gave an excellent display of their counter-attacking ability in their win over Napoli last weekend, and their performance in Turin was tenacious, despite the fact that they were missing first-choice players all over the field. Tomorrow they will have to do without Stefano Mauri and Libor Kozak who are suspended, while Miroslav Klose and Andre Dias are still injured. Mauri will be missed, as he has been superb in recent weeks, although his absence will present out-of-form midfielder Hernanez – who has generally started on the bench of late - with an opportunity to impress Edy Reja.

With rumours linking him to Arsenal and Tottenham, will Hernanez recover his form tomorrow? 

Novara lost 2-0 to Parma last week, and even they must know that the eleven-point gap which separates them from Serie A survival is too big to bridge over the remaining six games of the season. Though Lazio haven’t won away from home since January (not counting the Rome derby, when they were technically the away team), Novara have the conceded more goals than every other Serie A team except for Genoa. They have also recorded only three home wins all season. The Lazio players seem to have finally realised the importance of fighting for every point between now and the end of the season, and I think they will take all three tomorrow.

Prediction – Lazio to win – 6 points

Match odds:            Novara          11/4

                             Draw            23/10

                             Lazio            19/20

Serie A - round 32 results

Chievo          0-1       AC Milan     

Catania         1-2       Lecce         

Fiorentina      0-0       Palermo     

Genoa           1-1       Cesena       

Inter             2-1       Siena

Juventus       2-1       Lazio

Napoli           1-3       Atalanta     

Parma           2-0       Novara       

Roma            3-1       Udinese
Bologna        1-0       Cagliari

Serie A - round 31 results

AC Milan         1-2       Fiorentina   

Atalanta         1-2       Siena

Cagliari          2-2       Inter  

Cesena          0-0       Bologna      

Chievo           3-2       Catania      

Lazio             3-1       Napoli        

Lecce            4-2       Roma         

Novara          1-1       Genoa        

Palermo         0-2       Juventus     

Udinese         3-1       Parma

Cagliari v Inter Match Preview and Betting Tips

Saturday 7th April 2012, 2pm GMT

It will take a miracle for Inter to qualify for next season’s Champions League considering the fact that they are seven points off third place with just eight games to go. Though we are all entitled to dream, the more realistic Inter fans will be looking ahead to next season and trying to forget this one.

New coach Andrea Stramaccioni got off to a winning start last weekend, but it was far less comfortable than it should have been considering the fact that they led Genoa 3-0 at one stage. Tomorrow provides a much tougher task for the Nerazzurri as they travel to face Cagliari. Indeed, only three teams have managed to beat the Sardinians on their home soil this season (Milan, Lazio and Lecce).

Goalkeeper Julio Cesar and central defender Lucio are both suspended for tomorrow’s game, while Maicon, Wesley Sneijder and Ricardo Alvarez are still injured. Diego Milito will provide Inter’s main goal threat as usual – indeed without his contribution, this season would have been even more of a disaster for Inter. Cagliari midfielder Daniele Dessena is out for the rest of the season due to injury, though defender Davide Astori is expected to return for this encounter.

Cagliari's Pinilla netted a fine goal against Atalanta on Sunday, and then proceeded to embarrass himself with these silly arm movements while his team-mates walked away feeling sorry for him

Cagliari have won four of their last five games at home, while Inter have lost four of their last five away games. There are two factors which weaken my conviction about this week’s tip – firstly, the Inter players have a new coach to impress, and secondly, the game will not be played at Cagliari’s home ground (it will be played in Trieste due to renovation work which is being carried out at the Stadio Sant'Elia).

The odds on an Inter win are far too short for my liking however, and I fancy the chances of this resolute Cagliari side managing at least a draw tomorrow.

Tip – Lay Inter  - 5pts

Match Odds:   Cagliari          13/5   

                     Draw            23/10

                     Inter             evens

Serie A - round 30 results

Bologna        1-3       Palermo     

Cagliari          2-0       Atalanta     

Fiorentina      1-2       Chievo       

Inter             5-4       Genoa        

Juventus       3-0       Napoli        

Lecce            0-0       Cesena       

Roma            5-2       Novara       

Siena            1-0       Udinese      

Catania         1-1       AC Milan     

Parma           3-1       Lazio

Parma v Lazio Match Preview and Betting Tips

Saturday 31st Match 2012, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN)

Lazio’s target with just nine league games remaining is simple: to retain third place and to qualify for next season’s Champions League. They were handed a huge boost last weekend when both Napoli and Udinese dropped points, giving the Romans a three point advantage over their closest competitors.

Captain Tommaso Rocchi will lead the line for Lazio tomorrow

This weekend represents another opportunity for Edy Reja’s men to tighten their grip on third place: Napoli – who face Lazio next week – travel to Turin to take on unbeaten Juventus, while Udinese – who are less efficient on the road than Lazio – travel to Siena. Reja's injury list isn’t quite as long as usual (the recent return of Rocchi, Mauri and Brocchi is a huge boost in the race for third place), but it does contain the name of top scorer Miroslav Klose, who is expected to miss at least the next two weeks with a thigh injury. Senad Lulic is also injured, as is defender Marius Stankevicius. Parma midfielder McDonald Mariga and striker Raffaele Palladino have also been sidelined by injuries.

Parma have managed just two wins since coach Roberto Donadoni took over in January, though most of their games in 2012 have ended as draws. Will we see another draw tomorrow? Possibly, but Lazio possess far more talent in their ranks than the Crociati (even without Klose and Lulic), and if sufficiently motivated the visitors should earn all three points. This is a risky call, as Sebastian Giovinco and former Lazio striker Sergio Floccari are bound to pose problems for the Biancoceleste defenders, but I think the odds on offer for a Lazio win make a small wager worthwhile.

Prediction – Lazio to win – 4 pts

Match odds:   Parma            6/4    

                    Draw            21/10 

                    Lazio             9/5

Serie A - round 29 results

Atalanta         2-0       Bologna      

Cesena          2-2       Parma        

Chievo           1-1       Siena

Genoa           2-2       Fiorentina   

Juventus        2-0       Inter

Lazio             1-0       Cagliari       

Napoli            2-2       Catania      

Novara          0-0       Lecce         

AC Milan        2-1       Roma         

Palermo         1-1       Udinese

Palermo v Udinese Match Preview and Betting Tips

Saturday 24th March 2012, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN)

When these two met at the Stadio Renzo Barbera last season, the 7-0 result was Palermo’s biggest home defeat in Serie A and Udinese’s biggest away win. At the time Udinese were on their way to an unexpected fourth place finish, which qualified them for a Champions League play-off. They have shown less consistency this season, but are still just a point short of third place due to the fact that Lazio have been equally inconsistent of late. Last week Udinese threw away a 2-0 home lead in the last ten minutes against Napoli, an eventuality which would have been hard to imagine last season.

Considering the fact that their home record is the second best in Serie A (Udinese is the only club with a superior home record), Palermo should also be battling for a European place instead of trailing Udinese by 12 points. However their away form is awful, and they have managed to earn just a point from their last four games. Coach Bortolo Mutti’s future looks precarious - so much so that former Real Madrid defender Christian Panucci has apparently indicated that he will take charge of the Sicilian club when the season finishes.

Munoz earned a point for Palermo last week, but will miss the game tomorrow

Udinese’s defensive options will be limited tomorrow as Mauricio Isla and Mehdi Benatia are injured, while Maurizio Domizzi is suspended. Forwards Antonio Floro Flores and Diego Fabbrini are also suspended, though midfielder Dusan Basta is expected to return from injury. Ezequiel Muñoz and Matias Silvestre will be missing from the Palermo defence, through suspension and injury respectively, while midfielders Nicolas Bertolo and Giulio Migliaccio are also unavailable.

The result of this game is a tricky one to call considering the erratic nature of both teams, though it is worth noting that Palermo have not drawn at home so far this season. While Udinese have won just two of their last twelve league games on the road, they have won all of their last four games against Palermo. The visitors have scored 16 goals in these four games, and I think the absences from both teams' defensive line-ups should lead to more goals in an open game.

Prediction - over 2.5 goals - 5pts

Match odds:            Palermo                            6/4

                             Draw                                9/4

                             Udinese                            17/10

                             Over 2.5 goals                   5/6

Serie A - round 28 results

Roma            1-0       Genoa        

Bologna         2-2       Chievo       

Cagliari          3-0       Cesena       

Catania         1-0       Lazio

Inter             0-0       Atalanta     

Lecce            1-1       Palermo     

Siena            0-2       Novara       

Udinese         2-2       Napoli        

Fiorentina      0-5       Juventus     

Parma           0-2       AC Milan

Parma v AC Milan Match Preview and Betting Tips

Saturday 17th March 2012, 5pm GMT

After Napoli, Inter and Udinese bowed out this week, only AC Milan remain to fly the flag for Italy in Europe - though they will have to overcome Barcelona to make it past the quarter final stage. Their slightly less-than-comfortable 4-3 aggregate win over Arsenal in the Champions League was  followed on Sunday by a solid 2-0 league victory over Lecce.

Ibrahimovic celebrated his return from suspension with a hat-trick in Palermo

Milan’s league form since the winter break has been the stuff of champions. Despite a substantial injury list, the Rossoneri have shown consistency while their closest contenders Juventus have been faltering and dropping points. A four-point lead at this stage of the season is a valuable one, and Massimiliano Allegri will no doubt be targeting all three points tomorrow when his team visit Parma.

Parma’s form this season has been erratic as usual. They are not completely assured of safety from the relegation battle, but improved resilience in recent weeks (they have only lost two of their last ten games) has ensured that they sit six points above the danger zone in sixteenth place. Roberto Donadoni’s appointment as coach in January has obviously galvanised the Crociati team, and they have also been scoring more since the former Milan player took charge.

Ignazio Abate and Alessandro Nesta will be unavailable for Milan due to injury, and centre-half Philippe Mexes is suspended. Parma winger Raffaele Palladino is also injured.

I expect Milan to march on with another win tomorrow, but I prefer the odds on the goalscoring market to those on the win-draw-win market. The champions have been in fine goalscoring form of late – Ibrahimovic in particular has been superb (apart from his show of indiscipline against Napoli) - and Parma penetrating Milan’s defence at some stage wouldn’t surprise me either. The last time these two met it finished 4-1 to Milan, so let’s hope for more goals tomorrow!

Prediction – over 2.5 goals – 5pts

Match odds:   Parma                              4/1

                    Draw                               12/5

                    AC Milan                           7/10

                    Over 2.5 goals                  evens

Serie A - round 27 results

AC Milan        2-0       Lecce         

Atalanta        1-1       Parma        

Catania         1-0       Fiorentina   

Cesena          0-2       Siena

Genoa           0-0       Juventus     

Lazio             1-3       Bologna      

Novara          1-0       Udinese      

Palermo         0-1       Roma         

Chievo           0-2       Inter  

Napoli            6-3       Cagliari

Novara v Udinese Match Preview and Betting Tips

Sunday 11th March 2012, 7.45pm

This fixture was originally scheduled to be the early kick-off on Sunday, but it was moved to Sunday evening to allow Udinese extra time to recuperate from their Europa League first leg tie in the Netherlands on Thursday, which they lost 2-0 to AZ Alkmaar.

Udinese began the season in the Champions League as a result of their fourth-place finish last term, but they will need to finish one place higher this time around if they want to begin next season in Europe’s elite club competition (only three teams will qualify from Serie A this season). They slipped from third to fourth place last weekend, and with just twelve league games remaining they will need to collect as many points as possible in the race for Europe. No doubt this was coach Francesco Guidolin’s reason for leaving top scorer Antonio Di Natale on the bench until the 79th minute on Thursday – in fact, Guidolin has rested Di Natale for the vast majority of Udinese’s European campaign.

Introductions, Di Natale style: "Net, meet my friend, the ball"

The Bianconeri are not quite the force they were last season, mainly due to the dual departure of Gokhan Inler and Alexis Sanchez, but they still boast a lot of quality in their side. Pablo Armero is always a threat down the left-hand side, and Kwadwo Asamoah is another pacey attacker who can trouble defences and create openings when on form. Di Natale – Serie A’s top scorer for the last two seasons, and currently top of this season’s scoring chart - is a fantastic talent, and he has been complimented well this season by the return to form of fellow striker Antonio Floro Flores. Slovenian goalkeeper Samir Handanović is also a key, and often underrated, part of this Udinese team.

Novara have struggled this season upon their return to the top flight. They slumped to the bottom of the table in midweek (when Cesena picked up a point against Catania), and they have lost their last two games. In fact their only win since November was a 1-0 victory over Inter, who were gifting wins to all comers with incredible generosity at the time. Novara have averaged just one goal every two games over their last twelve matches, and really the only two things they have going for them on Sunday are home advantage and the artificial surface on which they play at the Stadio Silvio Piola. Incidentally, Attilio Tesser will be back in the Novara dugout for this fixture – the coach who brought them back to Serie A was dismissed at the end of January, but he was reinstated during the week following the sacking of his replacement Emiliano Mondonico (who held the post for 36 days - a short tenure even by Italian standards).

Udinese cruised to a comfortable 3-0 win the last time these two met, and their recent slide down to fourth place should provide sufficient motivation for them to target all three points on Sunday. I expect a tight game, but a fresh and rested Di Natale will almost certainly be too much for the Novara defenders to handle.

Prediction – Udinese to win – 6pts

Novara                    3/1 

Draw                      9/4 

Udinese                  evens

Re-fixed games from round 22 & 23 (played yesterday):

Bologna         1-1       Juventus     

Cesena          0-0       Catania      

Parma            2-2       Fiorentina   

Serie A - round 26 results

Bologna        1-0       Novara       

Fiorentina      2-0       Cesena       

Inter             2-2       Catania      

Lecce            2-2       Genoa        

Parma           1-2       Napoli        

Roma            1-2       Lazio

Siena            3-3       Cagliari       

Udinese         0-0       Atalanta     

Juventus       1-1       Chievo       

Palermo         0-4       AC Milan

Lecce v Genoa Match Preview and Betting Tips

Sunday 4th March 2012, 2pm GMT


A lot of observers have felt that Lecce’s consistently low league position this season has been misleading considering the quality in their squad, and coach Serse Cosmi has proven this to be the case since he took charge. Sixteen points from a possible twenty-four in their last eight games indicates that Lecce carry the form going into tomorrow’s clash with Genoa.

Lecce's Juan Cuadrado, who scored for Columbia in their midweek win over Mexico

Recent results such as an away victory in Cagliari and a home win over Inter have opened a few eyes and lifted the Apulia side to within two points of an escape from the relegation zone. Players such as top scorer David Di Michele and on-loan midfielder Juan Cuadrado have been key for Lecce of late, and they are likely to pose problems for Genoa’s fragile defence tomorrow.

Genoa themselves are without a win in four games, but at least they managed to end a three-game goalless run last week when they drew 2-2 with Parma. It was Rodrigo Palacio who salvaged a point for the Grifoni with a late equaliser, and they will be relying on their top scorer to provide the goals again tomorrow considering the fact that Alberto Gilardino will not make his return from injury as had been expected. The return from suspension of Davide Biondini and Giuseppe Sculli will help their cause however.

Genoa’s form on the road is generally poor – they have lost all of their last six away games in all competitions - and it’s hard to see them coping with Lecce’s pace of attack for 90 minutes tomorrow. The home side are unbeaten in their last four games, and I expect them to continue this good run in a game which should see a few goals.

Prediction – Lecce to win – 5 points

Match odds:            Lecce            11/10

                             Draw            11/5

                             Genoa           12/5

Serie A - round 25 results

Atalanta         4-1       Roma         

Bologna         1-3       Udinese      

Cagliari          1-2       Lecce         

Catania          3-1       Novara       

Chievo           1-0       Cesena       

Lazio             1-0       Fiorentina   

Napoli            1-0       Inter

Siena             4-1       Palermo     

AC Milan         1-1       Juventus     

Genoa            2-2       Parma

Napoli v Internazionale Match Preview and Betting Tips

Sunday 26th February 2012, 7.45pm GMT (live on ESPN)

The contrasting fortunes of these two sides was epitomised by their respective Champions League results in midweek. Inter’s performance in Marseilles – although quite negative and defensive – wasn’t bad compared to their recent domestic efforts. A late lapse in concentration however meant that they recorded a fourth straight defeat, despite their efforts. Napoli, meanwhile, are on the crest of a wave and on the verge of a Champions League quarter-final after beating Chelsea convincingly on the same turf where they will face Inter on Sunday evening.

Inter’s league form has been erratic this term, to say the least. Following a rocky start to the season under Gian Piero Gasperini, his replacement Claudio Ranieri appeared to stabilise the squad. An impressive run of results followed, including a win in the Milan derby and a come-from-behind victory over Lazio, and then the Nerazzurri suddenly fell apart again. Nine-year-old fan Filippo showed up at the San Siro for last week’s game against Bologna with a (very polite) banner which read "Could you win? Otherwise at school they will make fun of me. Thanks, Filippo." Bologna won 3-0. Poor Filippo.

I'm not predicting an enjoyable week in school for Filippo next week...

Napoli have always been a tough nut to crack at the Stadio San Paolo, and their current squad is the best they have had in a long time. Gokhan Inler has added quite a bit of guile in midfield to a team which finished in the top three last season. Marek Hamsik is suspended for this game, but fellow attackers Cavani and Lavezzi are on top form at present, and on-loan-from-Inter player Goran Pandev will provide adequate cover for Hamsik on Sunday. Inter defenders Maicon, Ranocchia and playmaker Ricardo Alvarez are all expected to miss out due to injury.

Ranieri is currently feeling the pressure at Inter, and Chairman Massimo Moratti’s recent statement that he will “try to keep going” with the former Chelsea boss was hardly a vote of massive confidence. The Inter coach has made some strange selection decisions of late – starting the frustrating Mauro Zarate ahead of top scorer Diego Milito in Marseilles for example – and he appears to have lost the confidence of his players. Five league games without a win tells its own story, and I don’t expect Napoli to show their wounded opponents any mercy on Sunday.

Prediction – Napoli to win – 4pts

Match odds:            Napoli           10/11

                             Draw            9/4

                             Inter             3/1