Serie A | Gameweek 18

Dec 29, 2024 at 11.30am UK

Dacia Arena

Udinese vs Torino

Match preview

After inflicting a rare home defeat on in-form Fiorentina, Udinese fought bravely from behind to stun their hosts at the Stadio Franchi in their final game before Christmas.

Strikers Lorenzo Lucca and Florian Thauvin both found the net in Florence, and after taking the lead, the Friulians held on for a 2-1 victory that keeps them ninth in the standings, just behind AC Milan.

Two wins from three league games is as many as they had managed in the previous 10, a period in which Kosta Runjaic's side faded after a bright start to his reign.

After winning four and drawing the other of his first five home games, Runjaic has since overseen three successive defeats in Udine - by a combined score of 7-1 - and his next task will be to turn the Bianconeri's home form around.

Despite winning just one of their last seven Serie A encounters with Torino, Udinese enter Sunday's clash with a strong record in end-of-year fixtures, having lost just two of their last 13, most recently beating Bologna 3-0 in December.

In contrast to their hosts, the last time Torino won the final league match of a calendar year was back in 2016, with four draws and three defeats since then.

The Turin club also head into the game in the midst of a worrying slump in form, with a serious lack of goals hampering their chances of challenging for Europe.

In their last eight top-flight outings, Toro have scored the fewest goals of any Serie A side - just two - after scoring 15 in their first nine games under Paolo Vanoli.

Last week, they were beaten 2-0 at home by Bologna, conceding twice in the final 20 minutes to suffer a frustrating defeat that leaves them 12th in the table with two games remaining at the halfway stage.

The Granata will be looking to get back on track by continuing their impressive record against Udinese, having won 10 of their last 18 league meetings with the Friulians, including the last two in Udine.

Recent Performance

Udinese Serie A form:LDLWLW

Udinese form (all competitions):DLWLLW

Torino Serie A form:LDLDWL

Team News

Kosta Runjaic could welcome back key defender Jaka Bijol this weekend after the Slovenian centre-back missed Udinese's win over Fiorentina with muscular fatigue, while midfielder Martin Payero has returned to training after a month on the sidelines.

However, Oier Zarraga, Keinan Davis and Lautaro Giannetti remain unavailable, as does first-choice goalkeeper Maduka Okoye.

With veteran striker Alexis Sanchez likely to start on the bench, Florian Thauvin and Lorenzo Lucca should continue to feature up front, the latter having been directly involved in 18 Serie A goals since the start of the season after last week's strike.

Torino will travel north with an inconsistent front line, with Duvan Zapata out long-term and Che Adams and Antonio Sanabria struggling to find the back of the net, the latter having failed to score in eight previous attempts against Udinese.

Perr Schuurs joins Zapata on the long road back from an ACL injury, but Sebastian Walukiewicz could be fit after being forced off against Bologna with a respiratory problem.

The visitors' defence will also be boosted by the return of Saul Coco after the Equatorial Guinea international served a one-match ban last weekend.

Possible starting lineup

Udinese possible starting lineup:

Sava; Kristensen, Bijol, Toure; Ehizibue, Lovric, Karlstrom, Ekkelenkamp, ​​Zemura; Thauvin, Lucca

Torino possible starting lineup:

Milinkovic-Savic; Maripan, Coco, Masina; Pedersen, Ricci, Linetty, Vlasic, Sosa; Adams, Sanabria