Preview: Lazio vs Udinese – prediction, team news, lineups

Lazio will be back after sealing their place in the cup final with a dramatic shootout success serie a Duty on Monday evening, when they welcome Udinese to Rome.

A poor season could be avoided by reaching the Coppa Italia decider, but the visitors can reduce their deficit to one point by beating the Biancocelesti at the Stadio Olimpico.

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match preview

Keeping themselves in contention for an eighth National Cup win, Lazio reached the Coppa Italia final on Wednesday night as they beat Atalanta on penalties.

It looked as if Alessio Romagnoli’s late strike would ensure a 3–2 aggregate victory in Bergamo, but La Dea quickly hit back and pushed the tie into extra time.

Lazio eventually prevailed after a penalty shootout filled with numerous misses and booked a clash with Inter Milan as reserve goalkeeper Edoardo Motta made four saves to make club history.

Having already knocked out last year’s finalists – Bologna and AC Milan – they face a difficult path to reach the final, which will be played at home next month, but first they must resume a less than spectacular league campaign.

Maurizio Sarri’s side are only ninth in Serie A and in danger of missing out on Europe for the second consecutive year, meaning their best route back into UEFA competition will be to claim the Coppa Italia.

While still inconsistent, results have certainly improved, and they Napoli’s long top-flight unbeaten streak at the Stadio Maradona finally ends Last week.

In fact, Lazio have won four of their last six league matches – more wins than they have had in their last 17 – and Wednesday’s cup win would have done wonders for confidence in the camp.

Sitting just four points behind their hosts in mid-table, Udinese are unlikely to feel any fear ahead of the long trip to Rome.

A late Keenan Davies strike secured a point from this season’s reverse fixture, which was played at the end of last year, while the Friulani are unbeaten in five straight games against Lazio.

Furthermore, since the beginning of March, Kosta Runjic’s side have defeated both Fiorentina and AC Milan 3–0, in addition to drawing draws with European contenders Atalanta and Como.

Udinese have also conceded just one goal in their last four matches, although that sole goal cost them 1-0 home defeat to Parma Last time out.

Aiming to bounce back straight away – and boost their hopes of a top-half finish – the Bianconeri are now aiming to record three consecutive Serie A wins for the first time since 2022.

Lazio Serie A form:

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Lazio form (all competitions):

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Udinese Serie A form:

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team news

Lazio will be without key defender Mario Gila, who was ruled out of Wednesday’s cup clash with an ankle injury, so Oliver Proustgaard should partner Romagnoli at the back.

Adam Marusic is also doubtful to play, while Danilo Cataldi and captain Mattia Zaccagni will both join first- and third-choice goalkeepers Ivan Provedel and Alessio Furlanetto on the sidelines.

Daniele Maldini, Tijjani Noslin, Boulaye Dia and Petar Ratkov are struggling to fill the void left by West Ham United’s Taty Castellanos, with wide men Matteo Cancellieri and Gustav Isaksen the hosts’ joint top scorers with just four league goals so far.

In contrast, Davies – who made his Serie A debut against Lazio and scored a last-gasp leveler in December’s reverse fixture – has scored in double figures this season.

However, he is not due back from his latest injury until next week; Specifically, Udinese averages only 0.7 points and 0.5 goals per game without him, while these increase to 1.4 and 1.3 respectively when the English striker starts.

Nicolo Zaniolo started against Parma, but Adam Buksa, Wakoun Bayo and Idrissa Gueye are all available if Runjaić opts for a more traditional centre-forward at Olimpico.

Jordan Zemura and Nicolo Bertola are still injured, and the Bianconeri will have to replace captain Jesper Carlstrom, who will serve a one-match ban for accumulated bookings.

Lazio probable starting lineup:

Motta; Lazzari, Romagnoli, Provstgaard, Pellegrini; Besik, Patrick, Taylor; Isaksen, Dia, Pedro

Udinese probable starting lineup:

Okoye; Christensen, Kabasele, Soulet; Ehizibu, Zarraga, Ekkelenkamp, ​​Atta, Kamara; Zaniolo; box

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We say: Lazio 1-1 Udinese

Even though Lazio will be in very good mood after their last two results, Udinese are tough to break down and pose a real threat on the break.

So, as both teams are heading towards a mid-table finish, they may settle for a low-scoring draw.

Please click here for data analysis of the most probable outcomes of this match, scoreline and more.

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