Monza vs Fiorentina prediction: ITALY: Serie A betting tips on match 2023-12-21 19:45.
After a sobering 3-0 loss against AC Milan in their latest Serie A (SA) outing, Monza boss Raffaele Palladino stated his side must “do more against top sides”. The Biancorossi boss retained perspective though as he also claimed his side “never lost against clubs at their level” and he certainly has a point, as Monza are yet to lose a SA match against teams starting this round ninth or worse (W5, D5).
The visit of top-six Fiorentina looks a tricky fixture for Monza then, but they’ll be reassured to be at home where they’ve lost just once in SA so far this season (W3, D4). Only one of their last four such matches ended in victory however (D2, L1), while goalscoring is proving a problem, as they’ve failed to net more than once in six of their last seven league matches at the Stadio Brianteo.
Fiorentina struggled, but eventually beat relegation fighting Hellas Verona 1-0 on Sunday to keep pace with the top-four. Coach Vincenzo Italiano claimed the league table “looks spectacular” for his side right now and no wonder, as the last time the Viola had more than 27 points at this stage of a season was back in 2015/16.
They went onto finish fifth in that season – a feat Fiorentina will look to at least repeat this time, but further progress could be halted if they don’t end an active three-game winless streak in SA away matches which saw them score just once (D1, L2). Goal-shyness hasn’t been something that could be aimed at them too often though, as they’ve already netted 107 goals this calendar year – the most in their history.
Players to watch: Dany Mota netted his first league goal this term in Monza’s last home victory, with five of his six SA goals arriving at home – including the last H2H. That match saw Christian Kouamé score and assist inside the opening 15 minutes, and he also provided an assist in Fiorentina’s last away outing.
Hot stat: Fiorentina have scored a league-high six goals inside the opening 15 minutes this season.