After coming close to an opening-day upset, Salernitana seek their first Serie A win of the new season when they host Udinese on Monday.
While the Granata came within minutes of victory against Roma, their Bianconeri counterparts were ruthlessly swept aside by Juventus in their first league fixture of 2023-24.
Match preview
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Although the ageless Antonio Candreva starred again for Salernitana, as they fought back to lead 2-1 heading into the closing stages at Stadio Olimpico last week, his brilliant brace was ultimately not quite enough to topple Roma.
With time ticking down in the capital, Andrea Belotti struck his second goal of an absorbing game; rescuing a point for the Giallorossi and denying Salernitana a first-ever league win over Roma at the Olimpico.
Nonetheless, Paulo Sousa's side have started the new season in positive form - having already seen off Ternana in the Coppa Italia earlier this month - and now face two likely rivals for mid-table security, Udinese and Lecce, before the international break.
After taking over earlier this year, Sousa secured top-flight survival for his new club, and a third straight campaign at Calcio's elite level was their prize.
Salernitana could now go unbeaten in their first two matches for the first time in a sporadic Serie A history, and they will attempt to do so against a side they have lost to just once in the teams' four meetings since 2021, having won their most recent contest in May.
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When they visited Monday's hosts in their final away game of last term, Udinese's 3-2 defeat at Stadio Arechi was part of a four-match losing streak that ended a campaign which had started with real promise.
Following a chastening 3-0 reverse to Juventus in this season's opener, the Bianconeri have now lost their last five league fixtures all told - the Friuli club's worst such run since 2018.
As star striker Beto seems close to leaving for the Premier League and Serbia midfielder Lazar Samardzic continues to be linked with a move away, coach Andrea Sottil must cut his cloth accordingly at a club which has a well-established ethos of selling players at a tidy profit.
The former Ascoli coach still has to produce results, though, and an encounter with Salernitana followed by Frosinone's visit to Udine just before international football intervenes surely offers an opportunity to get off the mark.
However, Udinese have failed to score in five of their last seven away matches ahead of this week's sojourn down to Salerno, and finding goals in the ongoing absence of injured talisman Gerard Deulofeu is proving particularly tough.
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Team News
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Paulo Sousa may be loath to change a side that came so close to winning in Rome on the opening day, but a muscular injury for Guilio Maggiore could leave a vacancy in Salernitana's midfield.
Twenty-year-old Mateusz Legowski - signed from Pogon Szczecin earlier this summer, having appeared on Sousa's radar when Poland boss in 2021 - would be a strong contender to step into the breach, having made his Serie A bow as a substitute last week.
Up front, Erik Botheim faces competition from last season's top scorer Boulaye Dia, while ex-Udinese winger Antonio Candreva provides support for the hosts' lone forward.
Having made his first three Serie A appearances for the Friulani in the 2007-08 campaign, Candreva has since scored six league goals against his former team - he has also found the net five times since the start of May.
Udinese midfielder Sandi Lovric took four shots and created four chances last week, and the Slovenia international will start again on Monday, even if former Inter target Lazar Samardzic is promoted to the starting lineup after making an impression as a substitute against Juventus.
In attack, Beto's upcoming exit opens the door for either Issac Success or ex-Ajax striker Lorenzo Lucca.
Once again, the visitors are depleted by injury, as experienced defender Adam Masina joins Enzo Ebosse, Kingsley Ehizibue and summer signing Brenner among those consigned to the sidelines.
Salernitana possible starting lineup:
Ochoa; Lovato, Gyomber, Pirola; Mazzocchi, L. Coulibaly, Legowski, Bradaric; Candreva, Kastanos; Dia
Udinese possible starting lineup:
Silvestri; Perez, Bijol, Kabasele; Ebosele, Samardzic, Walace, Lovric, Zemura; Thauvin, Lucca
We say: Salernitana 2-1 Udinese
Not only on last week's evidence, but also their improvement since Paulo Sousa took charge, Salernitana start favourites to pick up a first league win of the season. Udinese's woes in the final third have not been resolved, so Andrea Sottil's side will make the long trip back home empty-handed.
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Top tip
Jonathan O'Shea
