Sampdoria is hosting Atalanta at Luigi Ferraris in round 10 of the Italian Serie A. Sampdoria has had a decent start to the season, but they have cooled off since a lot. Atalanta is still trying to find their good form, but they just can’t stay consistent right now.
With only 9 points, Sampdoria is in 15th place, and their defense is their biggest problem with 17 conceded goals. Sampdoria was on a 4-game streak without a win, but they were able to beat Spezia at home last weekend. Sampdoria has had only 29% of ball possession, 2 shots on goal, 0 corner kicks, 2 big chances created, and only 65% of the correct passes. Despite barely having any possession, Sampdoria was able to score 2 goals in the first half, and that was enough for a nice 2-1 win to end their slump. Sampdoria has scored 13 goals so far this season, and Candreva is their leading goalscorer with 4 goals and 3 assists. Vieira, Damsgaard, and Ekdal are injured, while Bereszynski is suspended. Sampdoria is a decent team, but I don’t think they have enough reach to get to the Europa League spot, maybe the Conference League, but that is a stretch as well.
Atalanta has scored 15 goals so far this season, but for them, that is not a lot, and they can score so much more. Defensively, Atalanta has been decent with 11 scored goals. In the Champions League, Atalanta is doing a solid job, and they are still in play to advance past the group stage. In their latest game against Udinese at home, Atalanta has had 68% of ball possession, 3 shots on goal, 6 corner kicks, 1 big chance created, and 85% of the correct passes. This was far from Atalanta’s best game, but they were leading until the 94th minute when they conceded a goal. The final score of this match was 1-1. The next few games will be tough for Atalanta, and they need the win in their next Champions League, but unless they improve on both ends, it will be hard to get. Zapata has scored 4 goals, while Pasalic added 4 assists. The injury list is packed with great players for Atalanta, and in part, that is the cause for Atalanta’s bad games this season.
Atalanta is still undefeated on the road this season, but this will be far from an easy game for them. Neither team is playing consistently right now, but Atalanta is the better team, and despite playing on the road, they are the favorites. I will take Atalanta.