Torino v Sassuolo – Serie A Betting Preview and Prediction
Torino and Sassuolo will clash on Sunday, August 25 at Stadio Olimpico di Torino, in their first Serie A fixture of the season. Below you can check out our betting preview for he mentioned match,
Torino first fixture on home soil
Walter Mazzarri’s men enter the 2019/20 season with high hopes following a very solid seventh-place finish last season, which, due to AC Milan’s Fair Play woes, earned them a spot in the Europa League qualifications. Heading into the next season, Torino already played five EL competitive matches and won all but the last two, against Shakhtyor Soligorsk (1:1) and Wolves on Thursday (2:3). While the Granata have a very tough second leg fixture against Wolves awaiting them next week, their focus will be on the weekend match, as they look to kick off the new Serie A season with a boom.
Having a chance to play the first match at home will prove to be a huge opportunity for Torino to continue their impressive home record from 2018/19 season, when they emerged as one of the top five home teams by producing a 12-2-5 record, which earned them 38 points, the same as Inter Milan
Sassuolo needs time to find the rhythm
Sassuolo finished last season at a mediocre 11th place with a 9-16-13 record to their name. It’s worth noting they could have finished in the top 10, yet the Neroverdi failed to win more than one point in their last four fixtures of the season. While finishing 11th might not seem bad at first glance, Sassuolo concluded the season barely five points above the relegation zone, which gives a whole new meaning to their 43 points.
What saved Sassuolo from relegation was their home record, which stood firmly at 5-10-4. As far as their away form is concerned, Sassuolo did not impress. Only four wins throughout the season are nothing to be proud of and considering they came against Spal, Chievo, Frosinone and Fiorentina, we cannot rank those four wins too highly.
The biggest issue plaguing Sassuolo last season was not only their away record, but also their scoring difficulties, which are expected to further deepen comes 2019/20 season, with the departure of Merih Demiral and Stefano Sensi.
Verdict & Prediction
Torino already played five Europa League prior to their clash with Sassuolo, which despite what some might think is not expected to harm the Granata in any way. That being said, the EL fixtures will, in fact, prove to be beneficial for Torino, as they got a chance to get in the rhythm ahead of the season.
Looking at their performances, Mazzarri’s men looked very solid with their emphasis on the physical game, which makes them a team that is very hard to break down. Sassuolo on the other side enter the new season with a handful of new players, who seem to be solid additions to the team. Nonetheless, we do not expect them to start performing at the top level straight away. Some time will be needed before Sassuolo finds their rhythm, which surely won’t happen in the first game, at Stadio Olimpico di Torino, where Sassuolo lost all of the last three visits.
Prediction: Torino to win
Odds: 1.90 Pinnacle
