Torino eyeing five opening game unbeaten run in Verona.

2024-09-16

Under the Friday night lights at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi, Hellas Verona aims to halt a potential trend of early-season defeats against a resilient Torino side that seeks to maintain their unbeaten record in a matchup historically dominated by draws.

Hellas Verona

Verona have had a mixed start to their 2024-25 Serie A campaign, currently sitting in 7th place with six points from a possible 12. They have won and lost two games each. In their most recent league outing, the Mastiffs lost 2-1 to Lazio, with all three goals scored in the opening 20 minutes. Casper Tengstedt's goal was sandwiched between scores from Lazio's Boulaye Dia and Valentín Castellanos.

Verona have now lost two of their last three league games, as many defeats as they suffered in their previous eight matches. The Mastiffs will be hoping to avoid three defeats in their opening five Serie A matches when they host Torino on Friday—a situation that has only occurred once, in the 2021-22 season, since their return to the top flight in 2019-20.

With 26 draws in 60 top-flight meetings between these teams, Verona have drawn this fixture more than any other in Serie A. However, since Paolo Zanetti took over as head coach in June, he is yet to record a draw in five matches. A 4-3-3 with Tengstedt, Abdou Harroui, and Grigoris Kastanos in attack is expected for Friday’s fixture.

Meanwhile, Torino will be missing several key players due to injuries, with Juan Manuel Cruz being a notable absence for this clash.

Torino

A goalless draw against Lecce in their last league game ensured Torino remained unbeaten after four league matches this season, with a record of two draws and two wins. This form places them in 5th with eight points.

Torino hopes to continue their unbeaten start for a fifth consecutive match, aiming to replicate their 2017-18 top-flight season success. Up next is Verona, a team against which Torino has excelled in recent years.

The visitors have secured victories in their last three away games against Verona, marking their best away winning streak in this competition. Defensively, Torino has conceded only two goals in their past six encounters with Verona, achieving four clean sheets.

Under Paolo Vanoli's promising leadership, Torino aims to remain unbeaten in their first five league games, a feat only achieved by three previous managers. Expect a 3—5—2 formation featuring Duván Zapata and Che Adams in attack against Verona.