False step Napoli. The draw with Udinese slows down the Azzurri's run and further changes the balance of the championship race. This evening theInter will have the chance to get to minus 1, but to do so they will have to beat the Fiorentina (20:45 p.m.), a fresh executioner in last Thursday's recovery. The 1-1 at the Maradona, while keeping Conte at the top regardless of what happens at San Siro, raises some doubts about the calibre of Napoli, who slowed down on the very night that could have launched them on the run. The fight for Europe is also very exciting, with the Lazio returned to fourth place after the resounding 5-1 over Monza, awaiting the Viola's response this evening. Roma also advances, with their second consecutive away win: the 0-1 of Venice (Dybala's penalty) is another step towards a decent ranking.
Napoli – Udinese 1-1: Conte slows down, Inter can go to minus 1 tonight
Il Napoli fails to take advantage of the opportunity to break away, ending up instead slowing down in the race towards the Scudetto. The 1-1 againstUdinese is worth a temporary +4 on Inter, but the Nerazzurri, in case of success against Fiorentina, would bring themselves to minus 1, almost completely eliminating the gap. And to think that the Maradona match seemed to have gone well after McTominay's goal, good at finding the lead with a nice header following a corner kick (37'). But Udinese's response was immediate: at 40' Ekkelenkamptook advantage of a Mazzocchi's mistake and sealed the draw with a nice right-footed shot from distance. A substantially fair result, at the end of a first half that was much more open and balanced than expected, in which both teams had had several chances to score. It is no coincidence Meret he was called upon to make a series of decisive saves, including one on a close-range left-footed shot from Thauvin. The trend continued in the second half and Udinese, despite suffering the inevitable (but sterile) pressure from the Azzurri, did not give up on stinging on the counterattack, making themselves dangerous with Lucca. As the minutes passed, Napoli raised their centre of gravity, but found themselves facing a well-organised Juventus defence, with Sava who made some important saves, one on Neres and one on an attempt by McTominay from the edge. Conte tried to raise the engine revs by inserting ngonge, Simeon e Breakers, but the attempt failed and the match ended without further excitement. The 1-1 leaves a bitter taste in Napoli's mouth, unable to extend and take full advantage of the favorable round. Inter remains in the slipstream, ready to take advantage of it to return to being even more threatening.
Conte: “Missed opportunity to extend lead over Inter? No, for the race for Europe”
“The difficulties were not being able to capitalise on the opportunities and get Udinese back into the game immediately – the analysis of Tale -. It's a shame because in my opinion we deserved more. After the 1-0 we let Udinese get back into the game right away, then we drew with them, they have players we'll hear a lot about. A missed opportunity to put pressure on Inter? We have to look at ourselves, it's a missed opportunity in terms of the race for Europe. Let's not confuse reality, trust me: we're doing something extraordinary, this time too the boys left the pitch exhausted. I'm telling you with my heart in my hand: we're doing something extraordinary".
Lazio – Monza 5-1: Baroni returns to fourth place, Galliani recalls Nesta
Triumphal Sunday for the Lazio, who literally walked on the poor Monza. The final 5-1, in addition to entertaining the white and blue fans, finally interrupted the home fast that had lasted since November 24th, allowing Baroni to return to fourth place alone, at least until Inter-Fiorentina tonight. The goleada at the Olimpico also had consequences for the Brianza team, who have been entrusted to Nesta again since yesterday evening: Galliani he decided to dismiss Vents and recall the previous coach, even if salvation seems more and more like a mirage. The Biancocelesti dominated from the first minutes, attacking the opponent with the right determination. Poor Monza, upset (for the worse) by the transfer market, immediately understood that Sunday would be complicated and that Lazio, pressed by their rivals in the Champions League, would have no mercy. The first gol He arrived already in the 14th minute with a header from Marusic, served perfectly by Castellanos. But it was in the second half that the Biancocelesti ran riot, increasing the proportions of a victory that was never in doubt: Pedro, who came on for the injured Dia, doubled the score again on an assist from Castilians (57'), then the Argentinean took matters into his own hands, this time on a service Weather in Zaccagni (63'). Monza has finally cast off and Lazio has struck again with Pedro (77'), then signing the pokerissimo with Dele Bashiru (88'). In the middle, Sensi's penalty (86'), useful just for the scoresheet and certainly not to make the Brianza KO less bitter. Baroni can definitely smile and prepare for the challenge with Napoli with the right spirit: the seasonal precedents against Conte (two wins out of two), after all, make the prediction at least open.
Baroni: “A high-quality match, now let’s think about Napoli”
“The thing that satisfied me the most was the interpretation of the race, I asked the guys to start strong – he underlined Baroni -. We had a lot of quality, and gave rhythm and speed to the action. This is the result of many occasions, if we want to find fault we were not lucid in the finishing. Congratulations to the lads, these are complicated matches that can become difficult. Speaking with the team every day I say that we must not look at the others, the best challenge is with ourselves. We have room for growth that we can fill, when you look at the opponent it is a sign of weakness. We must think about our championship and the growth of the team, other energies are wasted. Now a different match awaits us, Napoli is having an amazing championship. We are aware of doing everything possible to beat those who are the best today, a high level match will be needed. We will have a few days to prepare for it, we expect growth in these challenges too”.
Venice – Rome 0-1: the Giallorossi return to winning ways with a penalty from Dybala
La Rome takes home three key points from the away game Venice, achieving their second consecutive victory away from home (in the league) and extending their unbeaten streak to eight. Despite their efforts in the Coppa Italia and the imminent commitment in the Europa League playoffs against Porto, the Giallorossi prevailed thanks to a penalty by Dybala, who confirmed his unbeatable status from the spot (17 out of 17 since he has played in the capital). Ranieri's men were not particularly brilliant, but they showed maturity and defensive solidity, without ever seriously risking being caught. Venezia, now second to last in the standings with only 16 points, struggled to create concrete opportunities, despite showing some good play patterns. The Venetians, despite trying hard, never managed to capitalize on the spaces created on the outside, with Zerbin ed Ellertsson among the most active. The new signings, including Radu, Marcandalli and Fila, made a good debut, but their impact was not enough to change the course of the match. In the first half, Roma were dangerous with dovbyk and Mancini (decisive save by Nicolussi Caviglia on the line). The key episode, however, came in the 57th minute: failure naive of Marcandalli su Angelino and a penalty for the Giallorossi, transformed with coolness by DybalaThe hosts tried a final push to equalise, but they failed, also thanks to Silker, careful to neutralize every attempt and keep a clean sheet. Roma has thus taken an important victory in the race for European positions, while Venezia sees its hopes of remaining in Serie A further reduced.
Ranieri: “It was our best match in terms of desire and determination”
“I am satisfied because to get a result here you have to play a great match – the happy comment of Ranieri -. In the last ten games of Venezia there has always been a one-goal gap, they make a lot of exchanges, but we have been very good and intelligent. In terms of determination and desire to stay on the pitch, I think this was our best match. Dybala? I really didn't want to play him, but he told me: 'I want to get on the pitch'. The new signings? They are players who have settled in immediately. The training sessions done are what they are due to the short time, but we knew them because we studied them. Gourna-Douath is a good player, I replaced him because of the yellow even if he told me he was calm, but that way I was calmer. Our objectives? Roma will continue like this, but I can't promise anything other than trying to do our best. I am like the mouth of truth, when I know something I say it”.
Inter – Fiorentina (20:45 pm, Dazn)
Inter-Fiorentina, second act. After last Thursday's very heavy defeat, the Nerazzurri are back to watching Viola, in the hope of putting the debacle under the heading of "bad evening". More than a wish, it's an obligation, given the unexpected gift from Udinese: with a win, Inzaghi would be one point behind Conte, remedying, at least in part, what happened a few days ago. But the KO at the Franchi has left many questions and it's fair to ask whether it was just an episode (after all, the Nerazzurri hadn't lost in the league since the first leg of the derby on September 21), or whether it's the result of something deeper. An initial answer will come this evening, when Inzaghi's men will face those of Palladino, albeit in a completely different context such as San Siro. For the Viola it is also a good test in terms of Champions, in light of the victories of Lazio, Juventus and Milan that have changed the standings. Furthermore, the coach, unlike last Thursday, will be able to count on all the new signings (with the exception of the injured Pablo Marì), but the feeling is that a lot will depend on Inter. The Franchi team, in fact, lost badly despite a patched-up Fiorentina, playing their worst game of the season. Inzaghi, forced to give up the suspended Dumfries, will return to focus on the starters, in the hope of receiving the right answers immediately. For his Inter, there is no worse time to slow down: the calendar is scary, given that after Fiorentina there will be Juventus, Genoa, Lazio in the Italian Cup and Napoli. An immediate restart is urgently needed, otherwise the dream of repeating the Scudetto would be further complicated.
Inter – Fiorentina, probable formations
Inter (3-5-2): Sommer; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Darmian, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Zalewski; Thuram, Lautaro
In bench: Martinez, Calligaris, Bisseck, De Vrij, Carlos Augusto, Dimarco, Frattesi, Zielinski, Asllani, Taremi, Arnautovic
Coach: Inzaghi
Unavailable: Of Gennaro, Correa
Disqualified: Dumfries
Fiorentina (4-2-3-1): De Gea; Dodo, Pongracic, Ranieri, Gosens; Beans, Mandragora; Beltran, Colpani, Zaniolo; Kean
In bench: Terracciano, Parisi, Martinelli, Moreno, Folorunsho, Harder, Cataldi, Richardson, Colpani, Caprini, Rubino, Ndour, Gudmundsson
Coach: Palladino
Unavailable: Bove, Pablo Mari, Adli
Disqualified: Comacchio
