by Ryan D. Jaeger
With just 9 rounds to go before the Serie A title is decided, the
fight for the lead could not be much closer as it has come down to a three-way
battle for the top, with Inter Milan currently lying in first place with 60
points, A.C. Milan in second with 59 points and A.S. Roma in third with 56
points.
And although Palermo and Sampdoria are in joint fourth place, with only 47
points each most Serie A fans would agree that they - like the rest of
the teams below them - are out of contention for the title. But for fans of the
top three, currently the best Italian football has to offer, there is still
everything to play for.
Plus it won't be lost on Serie A fans that the title hasn't been this close for
at least eight years, which means that regular Serie A fans and betting fans
alike will watch the rest of the season play out very closely. This fact was
also not lost on the respective teams themselves as they recognize the upcoming
pressure.
Said A.C. Milan coach, Leonardo, 'It's not easy to make predictions as it's been
an unusual season. Milan has a lot of desire, Roma has had a good run of good
results and is trying to keep going, but Inter Milan still has the ball in its
hands.' Unfortunately for A.C. Milan, a string of injuries has plagued the team.
The most recent being when forward Alexandre Pato injured a hamstring in
Sunday's game against Napoli, which is expected to keep him out for at least a
month. He'll join injured teammates Alessandro Nesta and David Beckham, who
recently underwent repairative knee and Achilles tendon surgeries respectively.
So without some of its key players, A.C. Milan will have to dig deep to stay in
contention and surpass Inter Milan. Milan fans will be eager for their team to
pull out what should be an easy win against Parma tonight (Wednesday, March 24),
but without sustaining further injuries that could hurt the team's title
chances.
Inter Milan meanwhile will play last-place Livorno tonight, where intrepid Serie
A betting fans will no doubt be expecting a whopping walkover, and A.S. Roma
will face Bologna. If everything goes according to plan, neither of the top
three teams should break much of a sweat to increase their large leads even
further.
