Struggling Serie A duo Torino and Crotone face one another on Sunday with the visitors still searching for their first league victory of the campaign.
The Toro ended their run of five league matches without a win last weekend, while Crotone narrowly lost 2-1 to Atalanta BC.
Match preview
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Torino's frustrating start to their 2020-21 campaign was boosted last weekend as they secured their first three points in Serie A by beating Genoa 2-1 away from home.
The Toro board have reportedly been considering the future of head coach Marco Giampaolo, however the victory at Genoa should give the former Sampdoria and AC Milan manager more time to turn his side's fortunes around.
Torino, who have never lost five consecutive home league matches, are hoping to end their poor run of form at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino after losing their last four on the bounce.
The Turin-based club do not have the best of records against newly-promoted sides, winning only two of their last eight in Serie A.
A victory for Giampaolo's side could see them climb out of the relegation zone and potentially move as high as 11th in the table.
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Unsurprisingly, Crotone have struggled to adapt to life back in the Italian top flight since their promotion from Serie B, and have failed to win any of their opening six league matches.
What has been surprising was that their only point gained this campaign came against 36-time Serie A champions and current holders Juventus, when they managed to grind out a 1-1 home draw in October.
Crotone have posed a threat going forward, scoring in five of their six league matches including Simy's third goal of the campaign in their narrow 2-1 defeat to Atalanta last weekend.
The Pitagorici have however lacked defensive stability, conceding 17 goals in the league so far, only four teams have ever shipped so many goals at this point in the top division.
Giovanni Stroppa's side are desperate for their first league win of the season and a victory on Sunday could see them move level on points with Torino while remaining in the bottom three.
Torino Serie A form: LLLDLW
Torino form (all competitions): LLDWLW
Crotone Serie A form: LLLDLL
Crotone form (all competitions): LLDLLL
Team News
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Torino defender Armando Izzo is doubtful for the match while midfielder Daniele Baselli remains sidelined with a knee ligament injury.
Striker Andrea Belotti, who has six goals in as many league games, is a doubt for the match but could start up front.
Right-back Mergim Vojvoda is likely to come back into the starting lineup and replace Wilfred Singo.
Central midfielder Soualiho Meite could also return to the side at the expense of Amer Gojak.
Crotone defender Vladimir Golemic will be competing with Sebastiano Luperto for a place in Giovanni Stroppa's starting lineup.
Luca Cigarini is back from suspension and is likely to start in midfield along with Salvatore Molina and Milos Vulic.
Torino possible starting lineup:
Sirigu; Vojvoda, Bremer, Lyanco, Rodriguez; Meite, Rincon, Linetty; Lukic; Verdi, Belotti
Crotone possible starting lineup:
Cordaz; Pereira, Magallan, Marrone, Luperto, Reca; Cigarini, Molina, Vulic; Messias, Simy
We say: Torino 3-2 Crotone
Goals are to be expected as Torino, who have found the net in their last 12 Serie A home games against teams promoted from Serie B, face a Crotone side where six of their last seven matches in all competitions have seen both teams score. If Belotti is fit for the hosts, his quality inside the box could be the deciding factor.
Top betting tip
Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 3.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 3.5:data
Oliver Thomas
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Crotone win with a probability of 41.29%. A win for Torino had a probability of 35.15% and a draw had a probability of 23.6%.
The most likely scoreline for a Crotone win was 1-2 with a probability of 8.73%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (7.04%) and 0-2 (5.8%). The likeliest Torino win was 2-1 (7.98%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.59%). The actual scoreline of 0-0 was predicted with a 4.3% likelihood.
