Top Five Games in Serie A this February

After an interesting January that saw Inter Milan and Juventus maintain their battle for supremacy in Serie A, while Salernitana continued to languish at the foot of the table, the Italian top-flight title and survival battle resumes in February, with a host of interesting fixtures. 

In February, there is a tasty top-two battle between Inter Milan and Juventus, while the last two winners of the Scudetto, AC Milan and Napoli, will also meet. European hopefuls Bologna and relegation candidates Lecce will also lock horns in February, and there will also be interesting games for Lazio, AS Roma, Fiorentina, Udinese and Atalanta before the month wraps up.

For Serie A fans and ticket buyers, we preview the top fixtures of the month. 

AC Milan vs Napoli 

Napoli's visit to the San Siro on February 11th will be the most tasty fixture of Round 24. Both sides are the two most recent Scudetto winners, yet they are having a poor season by their recent standards.

Milan and Napoli were expected to challenge for the league title this year but they find themselves engrossed in securing a top-four finish. However, AC Milan is in slightly better shape than Napoli, with the Rossoneri sitting inside the top three after 22 rounds. They are eight points behind Inter at the top of the table, having played a game more than their San Siro cousins.

They are closer to the top because of their recent form. Stefano Piolli’s side have enjoyed much success recently, winning seven and losing just one of their last ten league games (D2). They scored 23 goals in those ten games--the joint-most scored in that period (level with Inter).

But they have not been as impressive as the top two sides defensively, with AC Milan conceding eleven times in their last ten league games. They have conceded 25 goals across 22 games this season, a record bettered by seven other sides in the league. 

So, AC Milan ticket holders should at least expect goals for both sides when Napoli visit the San Siro, especially as both sides have scored in three of the last five games between both sides in all competitions.

However, Napoli’s form heading into this fixture doesn't suggest they will trouble Milan’s porous backline when both sides meet. The defending champions travel to San Siro in poor form, having won just once in their last five league games. Incidentally, they failed to score in four of those games, meaning the chance of them troubling Milan’s defence will be small. 

But if any side can get a result at San Siro even on a bad day, it should be Napoli. The Partenopei have not lost to AC Milan on this ground in the league since 2015, winning five times (D3) in that period. Yet still, cocky Napoli fans should also remember that AC Milan beat Napoli 1-0 the last time both sides met here in the Champions League.

Lazio vs Bologna

Bologna's trip to Rome in Round 25 is one of the Serie A fixtures in February to savour, with Lazio serving as the host on this occasion.

Both sides have enjoyed slightly different fortunes in the league this season, with Bologna punching above their weight while Lazio have been performing slightly below what fans expected from them this campaign. Maurizio Sarri’s men have been at the periphery of the top four and European spots in recent seasons. They were expected to at least kick on this year and shoot for the title, but have failed to mount any title push.

They're rather hovering around the higher end of the mid-table, with Lazio ending January seated in seventh position, two points behind fourth-placed Atalanta. They're a side in form though, with Sarri's side undefeated in the league since late December (W4, D1). 

They may lose a game before meeting Bologna in Round 25 as they will play Atalanta and Cagliari before meeting Bologna. Yet, their form in 2024 and their impressive head-to-head record in this fixture puts them as favourites to win this tie. Also, the Eagles have beaten Bologna in seven of the last 15 competitive meetings between both sides, losing only twice (D6).

However, the fact that one of the two losses came in the reverse fixture should worry Lazio fans, who watched their side beaten 1-0 by Bologna in November. That win forms part of a sequence of games that saw Bologna lose just once in 18 games. But since that sequence ended just before Christmas, Thiago Motta’s side has failed to win any of their ensuing five games (D2, L3).

But they most recently held AC Milan to a 2-2 draw though, proving their bite is back. So they may require another gusty performance at the Stadio Olimpico if they want maximum points from this game. 

AS Roma vs Torino 

Torino will make a 440-mile trip to Central Italy in late February when they visit Stadio Olimpico to face AS Roma. 

Both sides are among the most successful clubs in Italy, with Roma’s three Scudettos bettered by Torino’s seven titles. But none of these titles has come in recent seasons, and both sides are still trying to climb up the pyramid of Italian football. 

Roma came close to becoming a force again when they hired the legendary manager Jose Mourinho. But after two seasons of a good run in Europe and decent finishes in the league, the Special One and Roma separated this season. 

In Mourinho’s place came Roma legend Daniele De Rossi, who has made a decent start to life at Stadio Olimpico. The former midfielder has led I Giallorossi to two consecutive wins in the league, keeping them within chasing distance of the top four, one point behind Atalanta, albeit with a game more. So they will be hoping to still be within the top-four conversation when they host Torino towards the last week of February. 

Meanwhile, Torino entered February in good form, with a run of one loss from eight league games (W4, D3), keeping them safe in midtable. They entered the new month still in the race for a European spot, with fifth-placed Roma just four points ahead of them, having played a game more. 

So chances are that this game could determine who ends the season inside Serie A’s top seven. As such, we can expect a cracker when both sides lock horns at the Stadio Olimpico.

Inter Milan vs Atalanta

February will end with an exciting fixture, with Atalanta travelling to San Siro to face Inter Milan in the rescheduled Round 21 game. 

Inter had cup obligations at the time this fixture was due. As such, both sides will meet in the last fixture of February.

With Inter on top of the Serie A table and Atalanta fighting to return to the Champions League for the first time since the 2021–22 season, this is sure to be a classic. 

But Atalanta will have to dig in to beat Simon Inzaghi’s side at the San Siro, given that Inter lost just once in their opening ten games at home. Also, Atalanta’s poor record in this fixture makes it even more spectacular, with Inter unbeaten in their last eleven games against Gian Piero Gasparini’s side. The leaders have won six in that period, including the last three. 

But should Atalanta begin February with the momentum with which they ended January (four wins and one draw in five games), they could cause a massive upset at the San Siro on February 28th.