Serie A: Juventus vs. Atalanta Preview, Odds, Prediction

Juventus and Atalanta meet at Allianz Arena in Turin this Sunday. The Old Lady defeated Monza this Thursday in Coppa Italia, bouncing back following a loss in Naples. Atalanta beat Spezia, once again having a masterful performance, especially on the offensive side. La Dea is on the rise since the end of the World Cup, and they could surprise the hosts. Though, Juve is very good at home, and Massimilano Allegri has his plans on how to keep three points in Turin.

Preview

Juventus (+110) had a terrifying night in Naples last weekend. A 5-1 loss to Napoli was one of the toughest for Juve in the past decade. Furthermore, the fact that it was Napoli on the opposite side of the field only increases the pain.

After the World Cup ended, Juventus won three games and lost that one in Naples. The opening clash was in Cremonese, and after that at home against Udinese. Both of those victories were minimal, 1-0. After that came the demolition in Naples, but the Old Lady tied to erase that against Monza 2-1, in Coppa Italia.

Juve is highly confident at home, having seven wins at home in the last eight appearances, with only a defeat against PSG, 1-2. In five of those victories, we saw Allegri’s crew keeping a clean sheet.

Atalanta (+250) has played well since the New Year. We need to say that Atalanta’s performances have been very impressive over that stretch, having one draw and three wins. That draw was against Spezia, 2-2, in the first event following the World Cup.

But after that came three victories, in Bologna, 1-2, and two at home. One was against Salareintana, 8-2, and another in Coppa Italia vs. Spezia, 5-2. As you can see, the offense has been on fire, maybe for the first time this year.

La Dea plays good on the road, having five wins in eight Serie A outings, with two draws and one loss. They scored at least two goals in five of the previous seven away games.

Latest News

Hosts have problems with injuries. De Sciglio, Ihattaren, Kaio Jorge and Peeters are all injured. Meanwhile, Bonucci, Pogba and Vlahovic are officially questionable, but we don’t expect to see them in the protocol.

Atalanta will lack Muratore and Koopmeiners. All other players are ready to play.

Head to Head Games

Atalanta was better than Juve on both occasions last year, beating the rivals 1-0 in Bergamo and Turin. Four of the previous five head-to-head games between the Old Lady and La Dea saw under 2.5 goals.

Prediction

When looking at the overall situation, our pick here would be both teams to score, and here is why. Juventus plays games with moderate efficiency, but those were against mediocre rivals. Once they ran into a good offense, Juve’s defense fell apart. Atalanta’s attack is fierce, and they should score at least once at the Allianz Stadium. Meanwhile, Atalanta frequently concedes, and Juve’s attack (who is, by the way very stable and constant at home) should be able to hit the back of the net at least once during 90 minutes.

Pick: Both teams to score -110