Juventus vs Roma
After the Derby della Mole last week, another heated rivalry is slated in the Serie A as no.1 Juventus host no.7 Roma at the Allianz Stadium.
Juventus remain unbeaten in the Italian top flight, and they aren’t showing any signs of decline after winning seven straight games since their surprising 1-1 draw with Genoa last October.
Meanwhile, Roma’s season has been far from ideal. In fact, it could even be said that they have failed to live up to expectations after their exploits in 2017-18 that saw them finish third in the Serie A and reach the Champions League semi-finals.
Despite their contrasting seasons, however, their match-up is still bound to be a cracker. After all, there has always been animosity between these powerhouse clubs and their fans since the 80s.
Talking Points
Juve proving they can win ugly
Juventus are one of only three teams in Europe’s top five leagues that are undefeated so far, but that doesn’t mean it has always been pretty for them. Truth be told, it’s the complete opposite as they often play and pull off unremarkable wins.
Fans do not need to look further than their recent 0-1 win in Turin to find proof of that. Torino played better than Juve at the first hour of the match and only lost due to a penalty in the 70th minute—all after having two penalty appeals denied.
The Bianconeri also didn’t particularly play well at home against Inter Milan earlier this month, but they still came out 1-0 winners. It should be noted, though, that Inter could have taken all three points easily if they were not unlucky.
It can be argued that Juventus are winning by sheer talent alone. Nonetheless, while that doesn’t sound good, it sends a clear message that the team isn’t playing at its full potential yet and that they can still improve.
Juventus, like true champions, are showing they can deliver when it matters most—regardless of how they do it—and that trait is something Roma should be wary of as they try to push Juve’s backs on the wall.
Ronnie’s search for more goals
Cristiano Ronaldo is breaking records and reaching scoring milestones with Juventus, but the Portuguese’s job is far from over.
Ronaldo has already made 11 league goals so far, making it to the Serie A 2018 highlights when he scored from the spot against Torino to give Juve the win. That shot was also the Bianconeri’s 5000th goal in the top flight, etching Cristiano’s name in their history books as its scorer.
Moreover, Ronaldo is the fastest player in club history to score 10 league goals (14 matches) and 10 in all competitions (16 appearances).
Despite his consistency, however, he is only second in the Serie A in scoring, behind Genoa’s Krzysztof Piatek. He is also just one ahead of Lazio’s Ciro Immobile and two in front of Sampdoria’s Fabio Quagliarella.
With that said, Ronaldo will certainly be motivated to add more to his tally and present himself with the gift of topping the scoring table on Christmas. There’s no better way to celebrate the holidays, right?
Roma rising…and winning?
Sure enough, like all teams dreaming of the Scudetto, Roma will look to pull off an upset against a heavily favoured Juve squad.
Fortunately for the Romans, they seem to be finding their rhythm at just the right time, having been unbeaten in their last three and losing just once in their past seven outings.
The pessimistic supporter will see their four draws in that stretch as a disappointing result, but the fact that they are holding on and pulling off wins from time to time should be a source of hope and belief.
Roma recently edged out Genoa 3-2, coming back twice in the game to fend off the visitors who thought they had the game in the back after scoring two goals in just 33 minutes.
That win shows Roma are slowly finding the confidence and mojo necessary to win games, and that couldn’t be timed any better as they head to this encounter with the Italian champs.
History
The past four league meetings between the two squads have been relatively close, with Juve winning twice, Roma once and the other one ending in a draw.
Interestingly, the last time Roma beat Juventus was during the 2016-17 campaign. Roma stunned Juventus at the Stadio Olimpico back then, with Daniele De Rossi, Stephan El Shaarawy and Radja Nainggolan leading the charge in a 3-1 rout.
Last season, the Old Lady of Turin won at home 1-0 before Roma played out a goalless draw in the return fixture.
Betting Tip
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Juventus vs Roma | Under 2.50 @ 2.05 |
| December 23, 03:30 (GMT+8) |
Let me make this clear: I predict Juve to win—thanks to their deep squad—but I don’t think it will be as one-sided as what the Serie A 2018 odds at SBOBET say.
As mentioned, Juve have a penchant for playing unremarkable games, and given that the two teams have some sort of rivalry, I expect their meeting it to be a tight and highly physical encounter.
Moreover, considering that Juve haven’t been scoring well in their past few games, I doubt they can create a huge lead in this match-up.
A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR ( ) BETS ARE WORTH: |
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|---|---|---|---|
| = €20 (Highly confident) |
 = €10 (CONFIDENT) |
= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT) |
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Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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