Palermo could easily slip into the bottom three in case they extend their winless run to four matches and that should be enough incentive for the hosts to give their best at their Renzo Barbera. Fiorentina arrive in Sicily on the back of Coppa Italia win over Udinese and hoping to record a win that could see them climb to the top 3.

Just 3 wins in 17 games

Just few years back Palermo were genuine top table side that were usually involved in the race for European places, but club’s uptrend in fortunes was short-lived. With controversial president Maurizio Zamparini slowly losing interest in the club, the Rosanero were getting weaker season after season and they have reached a point where they are becoming serious relegation strugglers. Palermo have been utterly disappointing this season, picking up just 15 points from 17 Serie A games, and they appear to be in a very bad place at the moment. While continuing to struggle on the road, the Rosanero have seen their home showings drop considerably this term, and having lost to both Napoli and Juventus at home, they are bound to experience a lot of problems against very good Fiorentina side, especially as the spirits will be low after they couldn’t hold on to one-goal lead against ten-man Udinese.

Michel Morganella and Santiago Garcia should return to the side, but Andrea Mantovani and Abel Hernandez remain long-term casualties.

Fiorentina back in business

Rarely does heavy summer recruitment produce excellent results during the first part of a season, but Fiorentina are one of just a handful of clubs that have pulled this off. This certainly has something to do with talented coach Vincenzo Montella, but also with the quality and experience of the players who arrived at Artemio Franchi during off season. Some excellent showings at the start of the league campaign saw Viola effectively join a top 3 race, with their strength in depth proving to be a major asset this season. Even when key players Stevan Jovetic, David Pizarro or Facundo Roncaglia were unavailable, Fiorentina played almost the same as when they were around, which speaks volumes about the quality of this side. After back to back wins over Siena and Udinese helped the players restore some of the lost confidence, Viola will fancy their chances of defeating out-of-sorts Palermo.

Ruben Olivera and Facundo Roncaglia are both suspended, while Mounir El Hamdaoui is doubtful through injury.

Verdict

Palermo are all over the place at the moment and after losing their last two games at Renzo Barbera, the Rosanero will have their work cut out for them against Fiorentina. Viola continue to impress on domestic stage and they look a good bet to record their third successive triumph.

Top pick: Fiorentina Draw no bet   1.70 (7/10) @ BetVictor

Alternative pick 1: Over 2.5 goals   2.10 (11/10) @ Paddy Power

Alternative pick 2: Away win   2.40 (7/5) @ William Hill