Catania return to home comforts after the heavy defeat to Fiorentina and the Elephants need to continue with strong performances at Massimino if they are to stay alive. Sampdoria have suffered a new low as they lost at home to Cesena and the Doriani are now under tremendous pressure as they sit just three points above the relegation zone.

Back to Massimino

Catania started the season in very good manner, mostly thanks to their impressive showings at Massimino, but they embarked on a very poor run at the start of December that eventually saw coach Marco Giampaolo lose his job. Talented coach Diego Simeone was brought to replace him and even though he needed some time to instill his ideas into the squad, the progress was more than evident as Catania finally rediscovered their home form, albeit continuing with poor performances on the travels. Nonetheless, the Elephants won’t be too disappointed with their away showings if they continue the current home form as that is the key to their survival battle. After beating Lecce and Genoa in their last two home games, the Elephans should be able to see off struggling Sampdoria, especially as they are used to the relegation race unlike their opponents, who will be under tremendous pressure in this match.

Giuseppe Bellusci, Ciro Capuano, Marco Biagianti, Mariano Izco, Martinho and Francesco Sciacca are all unavailable, while Marchese and Ricchiuti should return to the starting line-up.

From bad to worse

This season is slowly turning into an utter disappointment for Sampdoria despite the promising start, but the club owners are the only ones to blame. They decided to sell two key players, Antonio Cassano and Giampaolo Pazzini in the midst of the season and are now paying for their own mistakes. The team have lost their main creative and goalscoring outlets, so it is little wonder Sampdoria failed to score in six of their last eight games. With captain and most creative player Angelo Palombo picking up injury against Cesena, things are definitely looking bleak for the Doriani. Coach Mimmo Di Carlo was sacked following the embarrassing home defeat to Cesena, but his replacement, Alberto Cavasin doesn’t look capable of improving the club fortunes. The new boss will have some important missings before the Catania game, which only adds to the worries.

Angelo Palombo, Nicola Pozzi, Franco Semioli, Reto Ziegler, Daniele Gastaldello and Vladimir Koman are all unavailable, meaning the visitors will be without half of the starting line up in Catania.

Verdict

Catania are a real force to be reckoned with at home and they have started playing to their potential under Diego Simeone. Sampdoria, on the other hand, are under extreme pressure as they never expected to drop into the relegation race, they are really low on confidence and are missing several first team regulars, so home win looks like a banker here.

Our prediction: Home win

Odds: 2.10 (11/10)

Bookmaker: William Hill