Sampdoria (12-5-18) at Juventus (25-5-5)
Serie A Soccer: Sunday July 26, 2020 at 3:45 PM (Allianz Stadium)
The Line: Juventus -400 / Draw +500 / Sampdoria +950 -- O/U: 3 Click Here for the Latest Odds
Where to Watch: ESPN+, DAZN Stream live sports and exclusive originals on ESPN+. Sign up now!
Juventus plays host to Sampdoria in Serie A soccer action from the Allianz Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Juventus comes into this match leading the Serie A table on 80 points with a record of 25 wins, 5 draws and 5 losses following a 2-1 loss to Udinese in their last match. In the loss to Udinese, Matthijs de Ligt opened the scoring for Juventus in the 42nd minute and the lead would hold through the half but Udinese would be quick to tie the game at one, seven minutes into the second half. Juventus would have their chances, but ultimately Udinese would steal the win and the points with a goal in second-half stoppage time. Cristiano Ronaldo leads Juventus in scoring with 30 goals along with 5 assists while Paulo Dybala has 11 goals with 6 assists. Rodrigo BEntancur has a team-high 7 assists for Juventus this season.
Sampdoria on the other hand, sit in 14th place on 41 points with a record of 12 wins, 5 draws and 18 losses following a 2-1 loss to Genoa in their last game. In the loss to Genoa, Sampdoria fell behind in the 22nd minute when Genoa scored from the penalty spot, but Manolo Gabbiadini would pull La Samp level in the 32nd minute. Genoa would have their go-ahead goal disallowed thanks to VAR late in first-half stoppage time, but Genoa would end up pulling ahead for good in the 72nd minute, leaving Sampdoria empty-handed at full time, snapping their three game winning streak. Fabio Quagliarella and the aforementioned Gabbiadini lead Sampdoria in scoring with 11 goals apiece, while Jakub Jankto has a team-high 4 assists this season. Emil Audero is Sampdoria’s top goalkeeper, conceding 1.6 goals per 90 minutes with 9 clean sheets in 35 league appearances this season.
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t shocked by Juventus’ loss to Udinese, but maybe Juve overlooked Udinese while trying to look at the Serie A title. The plus money’s always tempting given that Sampdoria was just on a solid run of form and Juventus has gone winless in four of their last 5 matches, but I think Juventus bounces back here with a statement win. The price on Juventus is a bit steep for me, so I’ll back Juventus to win with over 2.5 goals to get the price down to something more reasonable.
Chris’s Pick Juventus to win & Over 2.5 goals -125
AUTHOR: Chris Ruffolo
Follow Chris Ruffolo on Twitter @ruffthepickdawg