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Lazio welcome Sampdoria to the Stadio Olimpico in Serie A action on Saturday night.
The hosts have a three-point lead over seventh-placed Fiorentina, so they need to avoid dropping points in their remaining three league fixtures to secure at least a spot in the Europa Conference League playoffs.
I Biancocelesti returned to winning ways with a hard-fought 4-3 win over Spezia last time around, with Francesco Acerbi scoring the winning goal in the 90th minute of the game.
Sampdoria secured their first win in five league games last week as they overcame local rivals Genoa in the Derby della Lanterna, the oldest derby in Italian football. Abdelhamid Sabiri's 25th-minute strike proved to be the difference in the game, which ended in a 1-0 win for La Samp.
Lazio vs Sampdoria Head-to-Head
This will be the 120th meeting between the two sides across all competitions since 1946. As expected, the hosts have been the better side and enjoy a 55-28 lead in wins while 36 games have ended in draws.
They last met in league action at the Luigi Ferraris Stadium in December, with Lazio coming out on top with a 3-1 win.
Lazio form guide (Serie A): W-L-D-W-W
Sampdoria form guide (Serie A): W-D-L-L-L
Lazio vs Sampdoria Team News
Lazio
Pedro is struggling with a calf problem at the moment and is not in contention to start here. Patryk Dziczek is a long-term absentee with a heart condition.
Injured: Patryk Dziczek
Doubtful: Pedro
Suspended: None
Sampdoria
Manolo Gabbiadini is not expected to make the trip to the capital with a knee injury, while Sebastian Giovinco has resumed training and might finally be able to make his debut for the club. But, for now, he is a doubt.
Injured: Manolo Gabbiadini
Doubtful: Sebastian Giovinco
Suspended: None
Lazio vs Sampdoria Predicted XIs
Lazio (4-3-3): Thomas Strakosha (GK); Manuel Lazzari, Luiz Felipe, Francesco Acerbi, Adam Marušić; Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Lucas Leiva, Luis Alberto; Felipe Anderson, Ciro Immobile, Mattia Zaccagni
Sampdoria (4-4-2): Emil Audero (GK); Bartosz Bereszynski, Alex Ferrari, Omar Colley, Nicola Murru; Antonio Candreva, Morten Thorsby, Stefano Sensi, Tommaso Augello; Abdelhamid Sabiri, Francesco Caputo
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Lazio vs Sampdoria Prediction
The hosts have enjoyed prolific outings in their home games this season and after a high-scoring match last time around, they will be looking to score more goals here. I Blucerchiati have just one win in their last nine away games and might struggle here.
We expect the hosts to ease past their northern rivals in this league fixture.
Prediction: Lazio 3-1 Sampdoria
