Preview and Prediction
In the next eight games left, Hellas Verona can not lose anymore points if they want to qualify to Europa League. They are currently still on the eighth of the table battling for the continental competition. However, such would not be easy as they have six-point gap with Napoli on the sixth. This midweek, Miguel Veloso and Co will be taking on Inter Milan, which are sitting on the third and looking for points to secure the runner up position.
The teams’ previous matches
Ivan Juric’s men had a shocking result while meeting Brescia, the team at the bottom of the table. They slumped to a 0-2 defeat in their visit to Mario Rigamonti stadium. Andrea Papetti opened the score sheet through his header by taking advantage of Sandro Tonali’s corner kick. Brescia finally secured their win as Alfredo Donnarumma scored the second and last goal of the game.
Nerrazurri had the same result while hosting Bologna last weekend. They suffered a 1-2 loss despite having a number advantage on the pitch due to Roberto Soriano’s early bath. Romelu Lukaku netted an opener in the game. Yet, they could not double their lead even when Conte’s men had a penalty, which was poorly taken by Lautaro Martinez. Apparently, that was the turning point as Musa Juwara equalised and then once again Musa Barrow was the key man on the match with his winning goal.
Possible tactic
The former Genoa boss, Ivan Juric tends to deploy 3-4-1-2 with the transition to 3-4-2-1. He counts on the attacking midfielders Matteo Pessina, Mattia Zaccagni plus the main scorer, Samuel Di Carmine. His pragmatic approach relying on set pieces, rumble in the box and counter attack seems to be effective.
Antonio Conte prefers the same kind of formation, 3-5-2 with the transition to 3-4-1-2 lately. He accommodates the Danish international Cristian Eriksen for the number 10 role behind the dynamic duo, Romelu Lukaku and Lautaro Martinez. However, there are six players ruled out. Two of them, Alessandro Bastoni and Danilo D’Ambrosio sit out due to the suspension, while the other four, Stefano Sensi, Victor Moses, Nicola Barella and Matias Vecino miss the game because of their injury.
Players to watch
Verona’s impressive form this season is mainly due to the brilliance of Ivan Juric’s tactics and a number of senior key figures in the squad, who mostly are on the defense line such as Miguel Veloso, Salvatore Bocchetti and the wing back Darko Lazovic. Another notable one to watch is the top scorer Samuel Di Carmine with his six goals.
In La Beniamata’s squad, Romelu Lukaku is the main frontman this season along with Lautaro Martinez. Yet, the latter seems to have a consistency issue in his form after the lockdown. Another key man to watch is the 33-year old wing back Antonio Cadreva with his three goals and seven assists so far.
Verona vs Inter Prediction
Both teams lost unnecessarily last weekend and now are in search of something to bounce back and chase for their own targets. Verona’s form at home has been quite a highlight, including a win over Juventus, which even Romelu Lukaku and Co could not do. Thus, a draw seems to be a more likely result between them.
Betting odds
Despite all the advantage for the home side, Inter is still considered as the favourite by the punters. They are backed to win at 1.72, whereas Verona is in the win market at 4.60. The odds for the draw result are at the value of 3.85.
