Hellas Verona vs. Parma 7/1/20 Serie A Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Hellas Verona is welcoming Parma to Marc Antonio Bentegodi in round 29 in Italian Serie A.

Verona has been outstanding this season, and they were able to pull some surprising victories. The biggest advantage for Verona is their defense this season where they conceded only 32 goals, and for a team that small, it’s amazing. Verona hasn’t been as good in the attacking end and they scored only 34 goals. Verona is in 9th place with 39 points, close to the Europa League, but I don’t think Verona will be able to get to that spot. In their last Serie A game against Sassuolo on the road, Verona has had only 31% of the ball possession, 3 shots on goal, 2 corner kicks, and low 69% of the correct passes, but being the underdog is their game, and Verona is the best in these situations. Verona has scored 3 goals from their three shots on goal in this game, but unfortunately for them, this game ended in a 3-3 draw. Di Carmine has scored 5 goals for Verona so far, while Pazzini and Pessina both scored 4 goals. Darko Lazovic added 7 assists. Eysseric, Borini, and Salcedo are all injured, while Kumbulla is suspended because of the yellow cards. All in all, fantastic season for Verona, and even if they don’t get to the Europa League, this season is a huge success for them.

Parma is also having an outstanding season and they are in 8th place in the standings with 39 points. Both their offense and their defense has been solid this season with 38 scored goals, and 35 conceded goals. Cornelius has scored 11 goals for Parma and is their best goal scorer, while Gervinho and Kulusevski both added 6 goals. There are not injuries for Parma, but Kucka is suspended because of red card. In their last three Serie A games since the restart, Parma has 1 draw, 1 win, and 1 loss, and they scored 6 goals during this stretch, while conceding 4 goals. In their most recent Serie A match against Inter at home, Parma was forced to defend for most of the game and has had only 34% of ball possession, 2 shots on goal, 1 corner kick, and 77% of the correct passes. Parma was ahead since the 15th minute, but they conceded two quick goals in 84th and 87th minute, and in the end, Parma has lost this match 1-2. Consistency has been the biggest problem for Parma this season, but even like that, they have been outstanding, but I don’t think Parma will get to the Europa League without being consistent.

When playing at home, Verona has not lost to Parma in their last 3 games, but Parma hasn’t lost any of their last 4 home games. Verona has been good at home this season, but this game could easily go either way. Taking everything into consideration, I will give it a shot at a draw here. These are two pretty equal teams with solid defenses and not that good offenses, at least right now.