Simon Dalton presents his prediction for the Coppa Italia match.
Despite a narrow defeat to Real Madrid (2:3) in the sixth round of the Champions League group stage, Atalanta maintain a strong run on the domestic front. On Wednesday, the Serie A leaders will test Cesena from a lower division in the cup match—this could be an opportunity for Gian Gasperini to utilise a motivated bench.
Atalanta
Since the beginning of October, Atalanta have won 13 out of 15 games across all competitions, scoring less than two goals only twice during this period. On Saturday, they edged past Cagliari (1:0) thanks to substitutions: Ademola Lookman, Lazar Samardžić, and NicolòZaniolo invigorated the attack, leading to a total of 1.67 xG. At home, the current Coppa Italia finalists have scored 14 goals in their last five matches.
Cesena
Cesena are now in their 10th season in Serie B after their relegation from the top division in the spring of 2015. In the previous cup round, they narrowly defeated Pisa (1:0), who had enough chances for a draw in regulation time (15-12 in shots). In the league, Cesena sit in the top five but have the worst defence among the top half—conceding 24 goals in 17 games.
Atalanta vs Cesena Prediction
In 10 away matches this season, Cesena have only delighted their fans with three wins. The match against Atalanta will not result in a shocking victory for the underdogs—Atalanta are likely to score a routine two or three goals and progress to the next round.
