4 Storylines to Follow in Serie A for Weekend of Jan. 17-18
There's plenty of excitement in store for calcio fans this weekend.
Roma face a difficult away trip to Palermo, while at the Olimpico, Napoli and Lazio face one another in a battle for third place.
Depending on what happens in the capital, the race for Italy's final Champions League place could be blown wide open, so Sampdoria, Fiorentina, Genoa and even the two Milan sides will be watching closely.
Read on for some of the main story-lines that should define this round's action.
An Upset at the Top?
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Hellas Verona haven't been able to recapture their form from last season, but the Mastini were one of the few sides that held Juventus to a draw last year, so it's possible that Andrea Mandorlini's side will raise their game and cause an upset in Turin.
Roma, meanwhile, face a difficult away trip to this season's surprise package, Palermo. The Sicilians returned to Serie A in August after a brief spell in the second division, but few expected them to find their feet so quickly.
Giuseppe Iachini's Rosanero are just two points off a European place right now and could cause Rudi Garcia's Giallorossi problems at the Renzo Barbera.
Roma's defence will certainly have its work cut out for it because Franco Vazquez and Paulo Dybala are two of the league's most dangerous attackers, with 14 goals and 11 assists between them.
The Battle for Third
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Roberto Mancini's Inter are currently doing their best to join the fight for Serie A's final Champions League spot, but it's going to be very difficult to overtake the group of impressive sides currently in front.
Lazio, in particular, have been formidable in recent weeks and are currently the 'best of the rest' behind Juventus and Roma.
The Aquile are, however, just a point ahead of Napoli—who they play at the weekend. Stefano Pioli's side host Rafa Benitez and the Partenopei at the Stadio Olimpico in Sunday's early kick-off in what is effectively a six-pointer between the current two favourites to finish third.
Just behind them, Sampdoria can leapfrog them both if the game in Rome ends in a draw and the Genoan side can beat Parma away at the Stadio Ennio Tardini. And considering Roberto Donadoni's Crociati have just nine points, and only one win in their last eight games, that shouldn't be too difficult a task.
Vincenzo Montella's Fiorentina are in the last Europa League spot right now, but a win over Chievo Verona can help their push for the UCL if results go there way elsewhere.
Anything less than a Viola victory at the Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi, however, and they'll be in trouble because Genoa, Milan and Inter are all snapping at their heels.
Can Gianfranco Zola Turn Things Around at Cagliari?
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Things haven't been going well at Cagliari this season. Zdenek Zeman couldn't get things to click with the Sardinians, and the Czech has since been replaced with club legend Gianfranco Zola.
The 48-year-old ex-Chelsea star, who comes from the island, must now inspire the Rossoblu to defy the odds and escape the relegation zone in the second half of the season.
His first game in charge was a tough one, losing to Palermo 5-0 in Sicily. Things improved in the last round with a 2-1 win over fellow strugglers Cesena, but the Emilia-Romagnan minnows have only managed one win all season—on the opening day against Parma—so they're not the kind of opposition that Cagliari should be measuring themselves against.
This weekend's match with Udinese will provide a clearer picture of how bad things are. With Atalanta travelling to the San Siro to face Milan, it's conceivable that a win in Udine could pull Zola out of the bottom three, and give his side something to build on ahead of winnable games with Sassuolo and the aforementioned Atalanta in the coming weeks.
Can Pippo Inzaghi Sort out Milan's Defence?
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Pippo Inzaghi's Milan have conceded 21 goals so far this season—just one less than Juve and Roma combined.
There have been games—against Roma and Napoli, for example—when the Rossoneri's back line has proven itself capable of keeping a clean sheet, but unfortunately for Milanisti, defending well isn't something they seem able to do on a weekly basis.
Milan have thrown away points against Sassuolo and Torino in recent weeks and they can't afford to keep slipping up if European football next season is a genuine goal.
Luckily for Diego Lopez, only Chievo Verona and Torino have been less effective in front of goal than the Orobici so far this term, so even Milan's creaky defence should be able to deal with them.
That said, people were probably thinking the same thing before Kamil Glik levelled things for Toro in the last round.
