Fiorentina vs. Atalanta
Date: January 15, 2020
Time: 14:00 GMT (9:00 EST)
The Coppa Italia kicks off its Round of 16 this week, with Atalanta drawing Fiorentina in their first action of the Coppa Italia’s 72nd edition. Atalanta has won once all the way back in 1963, but were nearly victorious last year, falling to Lazio 2-0 in the final.
The odds-makers are currently favoring Atalanta to pull out the away victory (-103 at the time of this writing), but struggling Fiorentina was able to eke out a 2-2 draw against Atalanta early in the year. But that was months ago, La Dea is firing on all cylinders, while Fiorentina has struggled and has firmly established itself mid-table, and have also recently sacked head coach Vincenzo Montella back in December.
Atalanta should pull out a victory, but I’m hesitant to go out full force. A victory here means an additional 2 games for the quarter-finals, while trying to balance both Champion’s League in late February, plus staying strong in the Serie A to maintain it’s current top 4 position. The squad is not deep (even with the loan of former Nerazzurri Mattia Caldari), and the last thing the team needs is a tired squad dropping points it may desperately need down the stretch.
Nevertheless, I’m still pulling for a victory, and it could be a great chance to see some of La Dea’s Primavera squad in action, like Traore and Colley (or even Piccoli).
