Atalanta looking to remain at Serie A summit after Lazio trip.
[introduction]
After last weekend’s win against ten-man Lecce, the Biancocelesti take on league leaders Atalanta, looking to secure back-to-back league wins. S.S. Lazio vs. Atalanta BC kicks off at 19:45 [GMT] on Saturday, December 28, at Stadio Olimpico.
[home]
An 87th-minute winner from Adam Marušić ensured Lazio secured a dramatic 2-1 victory against 10-man Lecce last weekend. ‘It was a little messier than usual; Lecce were vehement in the challenge,’ Marco Baroni said. ‘It really wasn’t beneficial for us to be against 10 men,’ he added, having witnessed his team sweat through their efforts to secure the hard-fought three points. The Biancocelesti have alternated between a win and a defeat in their last five games [WLWLW], which places them in fourth place with 34 points from 17 games [11W, 1D, 5L]. They will look to put an end to this trend in a bid to secure consecutive victories when they host league leaders Atalanta this Saturday. Baroni’s side could draw on their recent success against the visitors on home turf, having secured a 3-2 win in the last league encounter between both sides at the Olimpico. Providing further encouragement for the hosts is their dominant record at home, where they have won six of their eight Serie A games this season [6W, 1D, 1L], making them the third-best team on home soil. A 4—2—3—1 is expected, with Valentín Castellanos leading the attack.
[away]
Red-hot Atalanta [WWWWW] continued their impressive league run with a hard-fought 3-2 win against Empoli last weekend. Charles De Ketelaere was the team’s hero, scoring a brace, including a header in the 34th minute and an 87th-minute winner, to help La Dea to a historic 11th consecutive Serie A win. ‘He gained confidence and improved his heading ability, as he showed today,’ Gian Piero Gasperini said of the Belgian’s first goal. ‘The second goal is truly extraordinary,’ he added. That win saw Atalanta remain atop the standings, having now accumulated 40 points after 17 games [13W, 1D, 3L], two points above second-placed Napoli. They will aim to continue their winning streak when they travel to Lazio this Saturday, having enjoyed notable success in this fixture with 38 wins in 112 Serie A matches against Lazio [38W, 42D, 32L]. It remains a joint record for the visitors against a single opponent in the competition, equalled only against Bologna [38]. Furthermore, they have had their fair share of positive results at the Olimpico, winning three of their last seven games at the ground while remaining unbeaten in six of those encounters [3W, 3D, 1L]. De Ketelaere could start in attack in Gasperini’s 3—4—2—1. Meanwhile, Mateo Retegui, the league’s joint-top scorer with 12 goals, is sidelined with a thigh injury until mid-January.
