Serie A: Atalanta Start Their Journey Back to the Summit

Torino vs Atalanta

At this part of the season, teams are clawing and shoving their way onto the top of the Italian top flight, as multiple clubs are within earshot of one another in the Serie A standings.

Juventus and Inter headline the Serie A 2023 news for being the two dominant clubs that have been successful in setting themselves apart from the pack. Meanwhile, clubs like Torino and Atalanta find themselves in the middle of the fray in the midfield.

Gasperini and his boys are on thin ice and are in danger of falling down the league standings even more if they don’t start getting back to their winning ways. They have a good opportunity to do so when they visit Granata for what may be a pivotal match for both squads.

Meanwhile, Torino will be hosting the Nerazzurri with a troublesome offence that has been shackling them to the bottom midfield of the standings. Irena Jurić’s offencive philosophy has been struggling to find its footing against the best teams in Italy, but with their fans behind them against Atalanta, the home team could find success in finding the back of the net.

Talking Points

Atalanta could and should strike now

The Nerazzurri have been, by their standards, struggling the past few weeks in Serie A. They’ve failed to tally a win in their last three games, and in turn, they’ve slipped a few positions down the league table, getting overtaken by the likes of Roma and Bologna.

There’s no cause for immediate concern, as they are still in the running to be one of the best clubs in Italy when the season ends. But if they don’t get their act together soon, they might fall even lower in the league standings given that clubs like Fiorentina, Frosinone, Mona, and Lazio are just a win away from overtaking Atalanta in the seventh spot.

Atalanta’s recent struggles in the top flight are certainly a head-scratcher, especially when you see them atop Group D in the Europa League. There, the Nerazzurri have remained undefeated after five games, as they dominate fellow Group D participants Sporting, Sturm Graz, and Polish club Raków Częstochowa.

Gasperini and his quad have been given a reasonable matchup in Torino to get their feet under them and go back to their winning ways. It would be most beneficial for them to get the three points before going into their next matchup, which is against Milan, who are having a stellar campaign.

Granata’s defence keeping them afloat

Whether it’s good or bad, Torino fans find their club in the same vicinity as where they were by the end of the last season. After 13 games, Torino have garnered just 16 points with a -6 GD. Well, it’s not that their defence is the one to blame for their negative GD; they’ve only conceded 16 goals so far this season, which is somewhat in the average range of goals allowed at this point in Serie A.

They bolstered their defence when they signed veteran defender Valentin Lazaro from Inter Milan a few months ago, and the wing-back’s presence for Toro have been noticeably valued by the club.

Their negative GD and their shackles in the midfield are caused by their offencive struggles to find the back of the net. After 13 games, Granata have only scored 10 goals, tying them with Salernitana, who are dead last in the league standings.

They do have a chance to reignite their offence when they host Atalanta. But doing so against one of the best defence in Serie A should be a tall order for the Irena Jurić offence.

History

Torino have struggled against Atalanta in their recent head-to-heads. Il Toro have lost five of their last seven games against Atalanta in Serie A, while the visiting Atalanta have won each of their last four Serie A games when playing in Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino.

In recent form, Atalanta have failed to garner a win in their last three games in the top fight. They fail to perform against the top clubs in the league, as they fell short in their recent matches against Inter and Napoli. Adding to that, they failed to get the job done against a struggling Udinese squad, which only has one win to their name after 13 games this season.

Meanwhile, it is more of the same with Torino. Just like Atalanta, they have lost two of their last five, won two, and tallied one draw. They too struggle against teams in the upper echelon, suffering clean sheet defeats against Lazio, Juventus, and Inter back in October, and even Bologna.

Betting Tip

Given their recent forms, the SBOTOP Serie A 2023 betting odds priced this match with no clear favourites to win. The home team, Torino, are the slight underdogs at 2.81. Meanwhile, the visiting Atalanta are the slight favourites at 2.40, given their success on the road against Torino and their current seeding in the league table.

Personally, I think Atalanta at 2.40 holds immense value given that Atalanta are a consistent squad that always ends the season in the top half of the league table. They are just one point behind the fifth-seeded Roma and are still within striking distance of the fourth-seeded Napoli.

Another line to consider is Asian Handicap Atalanta -0.25 at 2.16, given that Granata have conceded an average of 3.6 goals per match in their recent head-to-heads. And that stat is enough for a -0.25 handicapped Atalanta to still be a line that holds value and excitement at the same time.

 

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