Inter Milan are now just 10 games away from claiming their first Serie A championship in 11 years. The Nerazzurri won their seventh consecutive match to extend their lead to eight points after both AC Milan and Juventus were held to draws.
Juve’s draw has now put their Champions League place in grave danger; Atalanta have overtaken them for third while Napoli have pulled level on points after a string of victories. Meanwhile, Lazio have taken the lead over fierce rivals Roma in the race for the last Europa League spot.
Read on below for SBOTOP’s three main takeaways from the latest round of Serie A fixtures.
Inter close to sewing up the Scudetto
Inter almost have the Scudetto all sewn up. The Nerazzurri scored their seventh successive victory after edging out Bologna 1-0. Romelu Lukaku got the all-important goal, the Belgian’s 20th of the league campaign.
Inter are now eight points clear of second-placed AC Milan, who needed a late equaliser to draw with 10-man Sampdoria at home. They could extend that lead to 11 points if they win their game in hand.
At this point, Antonio Conte’s side would have to completely collapse over the last 10 games for Milan to catch up.
But even then, Milan have been in such patchy form — just three wins in their last eight league matches — that they are unlikely to make up such a big deficit.
Inter’s exit in Europe has done wonders to their league form, and they will fancy their chances to extend their win streak further with back-to-back home matches against struggling Sassuolo and relegation-threatened Cagliari coming up next.
With Lukaku still in sensational form — he has eight goals and five assists in his last nine games for club and country – the Scudetto is well and truly Inter’s to lose.
Juventus in major trouble after derby draw
After losing to Benevento just before the break, Juventus’ disastrous season got even worse as they were held to a 2-2 draw by city rivals Torino in the Turin derby. The Old Lady needed a late equaliser from Cristiano Ronaldo to salvage a point against their relegation-threatened rivals.
Juve were significantly shorthanded following the Serie A 2021 news that they had suspended the trio of Paulo Dybala, Weston McKennie, and Arthur for attending a party amid Covid restrictions. Andrea Pirlo curiously started defender Danilo in midfield despite having both Aaron Ramsey and Adrien Rabiot on the bench.
Pirlo continues to push the wrong buttons, which is unsurprising given this is his debut campaign as a top-flight boss. While Juve have publicly backed the Pirlo project, they will have no choice but to pull the plug if he can’t secure a top-four place.
Atalanta have already leapfrogged Juventus after a 3-2 win over Udinese, although Juve have a game in hand. But Napoli are also hot on Juve’s heels and have pulled level on 56 points following a 4-3 victory against Crotone.
And as fate would have it, Juventus and Napoli are set to go head-to-head in midweek with that coveted Champions League place very much on the line.
The Serie A 2021 betting odds will likely still favour Juve to get the result at home, but with the Old Lady in awful form and Napoli winning five of their last six in the league, it will be anyone’s game.
Lazio have upper hand over Roma in Europa League race
Just below Juventus and Napoli, the race for the final Europa League qualifying spot between Lazio and Roma has shifted to the former’s favour.
Lazio picked up a 2-1 win over Spezia to leapfrog Roma, who were held to a 2-2 draw by Sassuolo. The Giallorossi have now gone winless in their last three matches.
That disastrous run of results opened the door for Lazio, who are now a point ahead with a game in hand after winning three in a row. Their recent success is even more impressive considering captain Ciro Immobile has not scored in his last seven league appearances, his longest drought of the season.
Felipe Caicedo has stepped up with two goals in two games, while other players have been chipping in with goals.
As for Roma, they are set for a busy next few weeks as they take on Ajax in the Europa League quarter-finals this week. Meanwhile, they still have the likes of Atalanta, Inter, and Lazio still to come in the league.
Roma have a couple of winnable games against Bologna and Torino coming up, but with Lazio in fine form, the Giallorossi will need to win both matches to have any chance of securing sixth place.
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