Udinese vs Lazio

Udinese and Lazio are set to lock horns in a lopsided Serie A encounter at the Bluenergy Stadium this weekend.

New Udinese manager Kosta Runjaic picked up where his predecessor Gabriele Cioffi left off last season, guiding the Friulians to a 1-1 draw at Bologna on his touchline debut a week ago. Indeed, Udinese earned a tag as ‘stalemate specialists’ last term, drawing a league-high 19 matches en route to a 15th-place finish. Only two points separated Runjaic’s side from the bottom three when the curtain dropped, with their inability to turn draws into victories nearly resulting in relegation. However, it’s a new dawn in Udine, where they won a joint-league low one home league outing last season (D11, L7). Runjaic has gone unbeaten in his first two competitive games in charge (W1, D1) and will look to build on that record with a revenge-driven win against Lazio.

Visiting Lazio toppled Udinese 2-1 in this corresponding fixture in 2023/24, making it three wins from their last four league visits (D1). Yet, a seventh-place finish failed to meet the club’s ambitions, culminating with another managerial shift earlier in the summer. New boss Marco Baroni couldn’t have hoped for a better start to his tenure as ‘I Biancocelesti’ humbled newly-promoted Venezia 3-1 on the opening weekend. It was the first time in eight competitive games that Lazio have scored more than two goals, but a repeat of that free-scoring showing looks unlikely. The visitors have netted over 2.5 goals on just two of their last 23 road trips in Serie A, though the addition of Boulaye Dia is supposed to reinvigorate their faltering frontline.