Matchday 23 of the 2021-22 Serie A season gets underway this weekend, with Lazio hosting Atalanta at Stadio Olimpico on Saturday.
Atalanta sit fourth in the table – four points behind third-place Napoli and one point clear of fifth-place Juventus.
On the flip side, Lazio find themselves eighth – seven points behind Atalanta. It is worth noting that Atalanta also have a game in hand over Lazio.
Lazio head into Saturday’s clash on the back of a 1-0 victory over fellow Serie A side Udinese in the Coppa Italia round of 16.
That means the Eagles have won each of their past two games in all competitions, as well as four of their previous six.
Lazio have been extremely strong on home soil in recent time. Indeed, they have lost just one of their previous 20 home games in Serie A.
Given that each of the Eagles’ previous nine Serie A games have produced over 2.5 goals, Saturday’s encounters should be a high-scoring affair.
Meanwhile, Atalanta managed to hold league-leading Inter Milan to a goalless draw last time out – extending their unbeaten streak to four games in all competitions.
La Dea have picked up two wins and two draws since their last defeat, which came at the hands of Roma just before Christmas.
Looking at the bigger picture, Atalanta have lost just three of their 21 Serie A outings this term – registering 12 wins and six draws in the process.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s men are also extremely strong on the road, having avoided defeat in each of their last 17 away games in Serie A.
Head-to-head: Lazio have only managed to win one of their past six meetings with Atalanta across all competitions, suffering three losses in that time.
It is also worth pointing out that each of the previous six meetings between Lazio and Atalanta have produced over 3.5 goals.
Team news: Lazio could be without as many as seven first-team players on Saturday, with Francesco Acerbi, Toma Basic and Pedro among the absentees.
As for Atalanta, they are also missing a number of key players. Robin Gosens, Duvan Zapata and Josip Ilicic aren’t like to make the trip to the capital.
Given the high-scoring nature of this fixture in recent years, all the signs point towards a feast of goals this weekend.
Forebet predicts that both teams will score over 1.5 goals on Saturday, although neither side is expected to come away with all three points.