Monza v Sampdoria is a Serie A Week 21 match played on Monday at 20:45: odds, predictions, TV and streaming.
Monza have changed pace in conjunction with Raffaele Palladino’s arrival on the bench and after a more complicated start than expected are now sailing in the quiet areas of the standings, just a few steps away from the left side that chief executive Adriano Galliani had set as his seasonal objective last summer.
The brianzoli are also taking away some far from trivial satisfactions and in the space of a few days, after stopping Inter, they even managed to conquer the Allianz Stadium and beat Juventus twice between the first leg and the return leg. A not inconsiderable feat, which says a lot about the state of health of a team that, having reached 25 points, cannot and must not set itself any more limits. The seventh place that could mean Europe is not far away – Torino has five points more – and in front of Palladino’s men there is a whole round of return to face without particular pressure, that can reserve many surprises, considering that salvation is already practically in the pocket. Monza haven’t lost in the championship since last November and since the pre-World Cup success against Salernitana they have racked up six consecutive useful results, interrupted only by the defeat against Juventus in the Coppa Italia (then avenged a few days later).
Samp, pride and little more
Of all the teams making their Serie A debut as the Biancorossi are, only Chievo of the miracles (2001-02 season) have scored more points after the first 20 league games.
Leris
Monza who, in the evening’s post-match against Sampdoria, will try to break the time taboo: seven of Brianza’s victories have all come in matches played at 15:00, while at night Carlos Augusto and his team-mates have only obtained one point. The Blucerchiati are in deep trouble. In the last round, they did not disappoint in the away match in Bergamo against Atalanta, but for the fourth time in a row they had to deal with a defeat. After the success against Sassuolo in the first match of 2023, the team coached by Dejan Stankovic returned to disappoint from the offensive point of view, not scoring a single goal in the next five matches, including the one in Florence in the Coppa Italia.
Monza-Sampdoria: latest line-up news
Besides the disqualified Sensi, Monza face no major absences and Palladino will be able to field the best possible line-up. The coach’s only doubts concern the defence and the attack: at the back Marlon should get the better of Caldirola, while in front Mota is favoured over Petagna. In the three-quarter it is Ciurria’s turn.
On the other side, Stankovic is anxious about Djuricic, one of the few who can guarantee a minimum of quality between midfield and attack. Both the Serbian and Sabiri (who was sold to Fiorentina on the last day of the market, but will remain at Genoa until June) trained separately. And they are in doubt for Monza. The former Red Star coach could launch some of the new players: in addition to ex-Verona man Gunter, Cuisance, who arrived from Venezia, is also claiming space.
The Prediction
Sampdoria’s hopes of salvation can only go through goals, and at the moment Sampdoria are the worst attack in Serie A, the only one not to score in double figures (8 goals in 20 matches). Each match takes on the appearance of a last resort for Stankovic’s team, but Monza are unlikely to give anything away. The “biancorossi” remain the favourites in this challenge, in which the total goals could be at least two, as the guests will still have to try to unbalance themselves.
Monza v Sampdoria likely line-ups
- MONZA (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; Marlon, Pablo Marì, Izzo; Birindelli, Pessina, Rovella, Carlos Augusto; Ciurria, Caprari; Mota.
- SAMPDORIA (3-4-1-2): Audero; Gunter, Nuytinck, Amione; Zanoli, Cuisance, Winks, Augello; Djuricic; Gabbiadini, Lammers.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-1
