Juventus vs Lazio
Top of the table Juventus take on a fourth placed Lazio. The crème of Serie A are winless in three matches, with each featuring both teams net at least twice. Both of these teams have been struggling with form despite their top league ranking. The ’Bianconeri’ haven’t kept a clean sheet in five straight games, with all featuring at least four match goals and Furthermore, Juventus scored ten of their 14 goals during that run after the halftime break.
The hosts remain unbeaten at home this season, with all three home games since the restart producing over 3.5 goals. Juventus have scored in every match here this campaign, with eight of their 14 Serie A home wins averaging a margin of 2+ goals.
Lazio have lost three of their last four matches, scoring just twice that run despite netting the opening goal in two of those losses.
The visitors have won just once across their last four Serie A away fixtures, and four of their previous five have seen both teams score.
Players to watch: Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus has scored seven goals in seven SA matches since the restart, with six arriving after the break. Ciro Immobile, Lazio remains one goal in front of Ronaldo in the top scorer stakes, but has scored only twice (both times in the second half) since the restart.
Prediction
Juventus 2 – 0 Lazio
Sheffield United vs Everton
An in form Sheffield United continue with their fairytale season in tonight’s fixture against a 12th placed Everton. Sheffield United’s shock 3-0 win over Chelsea marked their first completion of a six-game unbeaten home run in the Premier League since Feb-Apr 1994. Across the five wins in that sequence, Sheffield averaged exactly 2.0 goals per match, and an average winning margin of 1.6 goals.
The Blades’ victory over Chelsea also marked a third successive home league win to see Sheffield score exactly once beyond the 75th minute mark.
This calendar year alone has delivered Everton a 62.5% Premier League loss rate on the road. They were utterly outclassed in their last away game, with a 3-0 defeat to Wolves making it a shocking eight defeats in nine away matches against top ten side.
The ‘Toffees’ have, at the same time lost a shambolic 88.89% of their away league matches entered as betting outsiders so far this term. The fact that Everton are winless in all competitions at Bramall Lane since a 3-0 win in August 1977 also bodes poorly.
Players to watch: Sheffield striker David McGoldrick hit a double in the win over Chelsea. Two of his last three goals have come beyond the 75th minute.
Everton forward Dominic Calvert-Lewin returns to haunt his former club. Three of his last four away goals have come in the first half.
Prediction
Sheffield United 1 – 0 Everton
Porto vs Moreinse
In form top of the table Porto take on an 8th placed Moreinse after being crowned Portuguese Primeira Liga (LPFP) champions for their 29th time with two games to spare after a 2-0 home win against Sporting Lisbon.
The hosts have kept a 75% clean sheet in a league-best of their LPFP fixtures, resulting in a joint-league low 25% of Porto’s league home games witnessing both teams score. However, they lost the only top-flight home matches in which they conceded the opening goal in this campaign.
Moreirense who are travelling to the Estádio do Dragão after losing just one of their last 14 league fixtures with two of those games witnessing under 2.5 goals, and seven of the eight draws came via a 1-1 scoreline.
This game looks set to be a tight clash especially as a joint-league low 25% of Moreirense’s LPFP road trips this term have produced over 2.5 goals. However, if history is anything to go by, the visitors have to contend with a nine-game top-flight losing streak at Porto that dates back to 2002/03.
Players to watch: Porto’s top league scorer Moussa Maréga is a man in form, having scored five goals across his last five LPFP matches and Fábio Abreu for Moreinse who has been the game’s first goal scorer in his last five goalscoring league matches – he scored the opener in the reverse fixture.
Prediction
Porto 3 – 1 Moreinse