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The conclusion of the final international break of the year sees the return of domestic football. Atalanta will host Spezia in Serie A action on Saturday.
Atalanta have been rather inconsistent this campaign. They are unbeaten in their last five games across all competitions, three of those games have ended in draws. They, however, beat Calgiari 2-1 in their last game and will be looking to build on that.
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La Dea sit fourth in the league table with 22 points from 12 games. The Bergamo club are already 10 points behind the first two teams in Serie A, Napoli and Inter Milan.
Spezia picked up an impressive 1-0 win over Torino in their last game with Jacopo Sala scoring the sole goal of the game. The victory over Torino marked Spezia's first win in four games and their third so far this season.
Aquilotti sit 16th in the Serie A table with 11 points from 12 games, two points above the drop zone and five above Calgiari at the bottom of the table. They will be looking to get back-to-back wins at the weekend as they look to maintain their top-flight status for a third season.
Atalanta vs Spezia Head-to-Head
There have been just three meetings between Atalanta and Spezia. Atalanta have won two of those games while the other ended in a draw.
The two sides last met in Serie A last season. Atalanta won the game 3-1.
Atalanta Form Guide (Serie A): W-D-W-D-W
Spezia Form Guide (Serie A): W-L-D-L-W
Atalanta vs Spezia Team News
Atalanta
Robin Gosens, Hans Hateboer and Rafael Toloi are all unavailable for selection due to injuries. Matteo Lovato was injured on international duty with Italy U-21 and will miss the game.
Matteo Pessina and Berat Djimsiti have both recovered from their injuries and are expected to feature.
Injured: Robin Gosens, Hans Hateboer, Matteo Lovato, Rafael Toloi
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Spezia
Spezia have Mehdi Bourabia, Leo Sena and Arkadiusz Reca on the sidelines.
Petko Hristov is recovering from an injury and may not feature against Atalanta. Aimar Sher and Aurelien Nguiamba are doubts for the game. Kevin Agudelo has recovered from his injury but did some partial training. He is a doubt for the game as well.
Injured: Kevin Agudelo, Mehdi Bourabia, Arkadiusz Reca
Doubtful: Petko Hristov, Aimar Sher, Aurelien Nguiamba, Kevin Agudelo
Suspended: None
Atalanta vs Spezia Predicted XI
Atalanta Predicted XI (3-4-3): Juan Musso; Berat Djimsiti, Jose Luis Palomino, Merih Demiral; Joakim Maehle, Teun Koopmeiners, Remo Freuler, Davide Zappacosta; Josip Ilicic, Ruslan Malinovskyi, Duvan Zapata
Spezia Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Ivan Provedel; Kelvin Amian, Martin Erlic, Dimitris Nikolaou, Simone Bastoni; Viktor Kovalenko, Jacopo Sala; Giulio Maggiore, Emmanuel Gyasi, Daniele Verde; M'Bala Nzola
Atalanta vs Spezia Prediction
Atalanta have won two of their last five games, drawing the rest. They have scored in all but one game this season and will be looking to continue that trend against Spezia at the weekend.
Spezia picked up a valuable three points in their last game as well as a first clean sheet this season. However, the visitors' defensive frailties should see the points go Atalanta's way.
Prediction: Atalanta 3-1 Spezia
