Serie A Betting: Atalanta add to Milan woes, don't rule out Juventus against Roma

Milan v Atalanta
Saturday, 17.00
Live on BT Sport 2 and Betfair Live Video

I tipped Atalanta to beat Lazio last week, and while they came close, they ended up letting us down after a thrilling 3-3 draw. I'm sticking with them, though, as they travel to an out of sorts Milan.

In fact, "out of sorts" doesn't even begin to cover the woes that currently surround Gennaro Gattuso and his team. Milan gave Benevento their famous first point of the season, were dire as they surrendered against Verona last time, and there's so much off-field friction surrounding the Rossoneri that it can't be too easy to play for them at the moment.

Easy to play against them, though, and Atalanta march to San Siro for this local derby unbeaten in their last four games of the season and surely confident that they can come away with all three points.

Milan have spent the week in lockdown and that may have focused their minds, but will also heighten the sense of panic, and I can see Atalanta running riot here. At their best, they play outstanding attacking football, and with Milan having to make the running at San Siro, they could well be picked off.

Milan have won only one of their last six in Serie A against Atalanta, and some of those Milan teams were a lot better and more organised than this one. On top of all that, Suso and Alessio Romagnoli are suspended, leaving limited options.

At the price, Atalanta have to be the bet of the weekend.

Recommended Bet
Back Atalanta to beat Milan @ 3.25

Juventus v Roma
Saturday, 19:45
Live on BT Sport 2 and Betfair Live Video

There could be a pivotal game in the increasingly topsy-turvy race for the Scudetto on Saturday night when Roma take their excellent defence to Turin against Juve.

After their clutch performance against Napoli, Juve have since drawn with Inter, and then ground out a win at Bologna. That Inter result may have been put into context by Udinese's thrashing of the Nerazzurri the following week, but Juve have proved that they belong back in the title race just when it looked as if they might be fading out of it.

Roma have lost only twice in Serie A this season, to Inter and then against Napoli, and Eusebio Di Francesco's side do look vulnerable against the bigger names in the division. They are not a Roma team in the traditional sense, with their attacking flair forsaken for a more tactical defensive approach, and it will be tough to break them down.

I favour Juventus, though: they may yet be missing Gigi Buffon and Mario Mandzukic, but this is a squad of players that is capable of coping with adversity, of pulling out results when they matter, and of slowly killing off each and every challenger to their crown.

I could see how Roma at around 4.90 could look tempting here, but I'm sticking with Gonzalo Higuain and a reborn Paulo Dybala to power Juve past Roma, and send Allegri's team into 2018 as title favourites once again.

Recommended Bet
Juventus to beat Roma @ 1.90

Sassuolo v Inter
Saturday, 14:00
Live on Betfair Live Video

Inter's biggest ever Serie A away win came at Sassuolo three years ago, when they won 7-0, and while I don't think that will happen again, they're a solid bet to come away with a win at a backable price of around 1.84.

Inter had an awful day against Udinese last weekend, losing their unbeaten record in unlikely circumstances, but I think that it will sharpen them up and stop them going through the motions, rather than send them into a slump. Inter are a far better team than Sassuolo, and we'll see that this weekend.

Much of that, of course, depends on Mauro Icardi, who has been in scintillating form this season, and given the issues surrounding the Sassuolo backline, he must fancy his chances of adding to his 17 goals here.

Beppe Iachini has improved Sassuolo, there's no question about that, and they've won two Serie A games in a row, but they've crumbled when they've met top opposition here: against Juventus and Milan, as well as defeats by Bologna and Udinese.

I think that Sassuolo are good enough to stay up, but sometimes there are just levels in sport, and Inter are several above Iachini's men. I have no problem at all recommending Inter at a generous 1.84.

Recommended Bet
Back Inter to beat Sassuolo @ 1.84