Serie A 2021/22 Matchweek 17 predictions & free betting picks

AC Milan is on the road against Udinese this Saturday after taking over first place on the Serie A table last weekend. That matchup along with Sunday’s Hellas Verona vs Atalanta and Inter Milan vs Cagliari make up our selections for this weekend’s Serie A Matchweek 17 best bets.

Udinese vs AC Milan

Napoli’s loss to Atalanta allowed AC Milan (12-2-2) to jump into first place in the Serie A standings with their 2-0 win over Salernitana last weekend. Milan opened the season with a 10-2-0 run before losing back-to-back games to Fiorentina and Sassuolo, but the club seems to be back on track after beating Genoa 3-0 ahead of last weekend’s win.

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Udinese (3-7-6) fell to 0-2-2 over its last four matches with a 3-1 loss to Empoli on Monday. Since starting the season off with a 2-1-0 record, Udinese has won only one match across a 1-6-6 run in its last 13 games. It’s a bit surprising to see Milan only going off as a -115 favorite here; Milan is 6-1-1 on the road this season and 2-1-0 in its last three matches against Udinese. We’ll roll with the road favorites in this spot.

Hellas Verona vs Atalanta

Hellas Verona (6-5-5) picked up its first road win of the season in a 4-3 shootout against Venezia on Sunday. Verona now returns home, where it is 5-1-0 over its last six games. Atalanta (10-4-2) defeated Napoli 3-2 on the road last Saturday to improve to 7-2-0 over its last nine games and to 5-0-0 over its last five.

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Given that Verona’s home field advantage shouldn’t really come into play against an elite road team like Atalanta (that is 7-1-0 on the road), this game can be capped as if it were being played on a neutral field. And while both of these teams have great offenses, Atalanta’s defense has surrendered only 19 goals this season to Verona’s 28. Superior play in the defensive zone should lead Atalanta to another road win in an entertaining game this weekend.

Inter Milan vs Cagliari

Inter Milan (11-4-1) also jumped Napoli on the Serie A table last weekend and is up to second place in the standings just one point behind AC Milan. Inter Milan is 6-2-0 over its last eight matches and will carry a four-game win streak into this Sunday’s matchup. Cagliari (1-7-8) is in danger of being relegated this season with only one win so far in 2021-22, but the club has earned four points over its last four matches with an 0-4-0 record.

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It would be stunning if Inter didn’t win this game, as is indicated by the fact that they are a -535 favorite at home. That line doesn’t offer much value to bettors, and the spread of -2 goals isn’t great either given how well Cagliari has been playing defensively of late. Seven of Cagliari’s last eight games have generated three goals or less, and Sunday’s total is set at 3.5 goals. A bet on the UNDER will pay out on a whole bunch of likely final scores including Inter Milan wins of 2-0, 3-0, and 2-1.