Genoa (6-8-15) at Udinese (8-7-14)
Serie A Soccer: Sunday July 5, 2020 at 1:30 PM (Dacia Arena)
The Line: Udinese +115 / Draw +220 / Genoa +240 -- O/U: 2.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
Where to Watch: ESPN+, DAZN Stream live sports and exclusive originals on ESPN+. Sign up now!
Udinese and Genoa square off in Serie A soccer action from the Dacia Arena on Sunday afternoon.
Udinese enters this match in 14th place, tied with Fiorentina and Torino on 31 points with a record of 8 wins, 7 draws and 14 losses following a 2-0 win over Roma last time out. In the win over Roma, Kevin Lasagna gave Udinese the opening goal in the 12th minute and were given an advantage when Roma were reduced to ten men with a straight red card in the 29th minute. Udinese’s goal would hold until Ilija Nestorovski doubled Udinese’s lead in the 78th minute. Roma would have a 4-1 edge in shots on goal in the second half, but wouldn’t crack Udinese’s clean sheet, held off of the scoreboard at full time, giving Udinese the win and the points that go along with it. Lasagna’s goal gave him a team-high 7 goals this season while Rodrigo de Paul has 5 goals and 4 assists. Stefano Okaka has 5 goals while Seko Fofana has a team-high 5 assists this season. Juan Agustin Musso is Udinese’s top goalkeeper, conceding 1.34 goals per 90 minutes with 10 clean sheets in 29 league appearances this season.
Genoa on the other hand, enter this match in 17th place, one point clear of the relegation zone on 26 points with a record of 6 wins, 8 draws and 15 losses following a 3-1 loss to Juventus last time out. In the loss to Juve, the first half saw no scoring and three cards, two yellows headed Genoa’s way. Juventus would break the deadlock in the 50th minute and double their last six minutes after that. Juve would push the lead to 3-0 in the 73rd before Andrea Pinamonti got Genoa on the board in the 76th. That’s as close as Genoa got though as Juventus would hold on for the win and send Genoa back with no points to show for their effort. Domenico Criscito and Goran Pandev each have a team-high 7 goals this season while Paolo Ghiglione has a team-high 5 assists. Mattia Perin is Genoa’s top goalkeeper, conceding 1.75 goals per 90 minutes.
I’ve gone back and forth on this game, but the fact is that while losses to Juventus and even Parma (this season) are forgivable for Genoa, a draw with a horrendous Brescia side isn’t. Udinese hasn’t been great for much of the year, but Udinese held their own against a high-octane Atalanta side and followed that up with a strong performance over Roma. Add in the fact that Udinese is unbeaten in the last eight head-to-head against Genoa with six wins, and I think Udinese on the ML is the play here.
Chris’s Pick Udinese ML +115
AUTHOR: Chris Ruffolo
Follow Chris Ruffolo on Twitter @ruffthepickdawg