Football Bet of the Day: Monza to scare Old Lady?

Monza and Juventus kick off the weekend’s Serie A action at the Brianteo Stadium on Friday night (20:00), with both sides proving a tough nut to crack for the rest of the league.

The home side have lost just three times in 13 games this season, and just once in their last 11. Juventus have been even more difficult to defeat, with only Sassuolo able to claim all three points against them in 2023/24.

In our Football Bet of the Day, we’ve picked out one particular market that may be of interest in this game.

Monza only entered Serie A for the first time in August last year, but they’ve certainly made an impression on the league in that short period of time. After leading the Lombardy-based club to 11th last season, head coach Raffaele Palladino has continued to impress this term and I Biancarossi currently sit ninth on 18 points.

Palladino has made Monza extremely difficult to beat, with only Inter, Roma and Atalanta able to get the better of them so far. They’re also unbeaten at home in six games, albeit four have ended in draws. Monza’s defence has only been breached three times at the Brianteo, too.

Friday night’s game represents the biggest threat to their home record so far, though, with Juventus following up five consecutive league wins with a respectable 1-1 draw to 2023/24 champions Inter last Sunday. Massimiliano Allegri is doing what he does best with the Old Lady – making them almost impenetrable at the back. Before conceding one each to Cagliari and Inter, Allegri’s side had kept six clean sheets in a row, and only the latter have prevented more goals away from home.

However, despite the difficult task in front of them, there are reasons to back Monza to inflict just a second defeat of the season on Friday’s opponents. The teams played each other three times last season – twice in the league and once in the Coppa Italia – and Monza came out on top in two of them. In fact, Palladino’s side did the league double over Allegri and co, who are not infallible away from home.

Juventus have the best home record in Serie A but there are three teams better off on their travels, with a defeat at 14th-placed Sassuolo and a draw with Atalanta proof that they are not perfect. Goals have also been an issue in away games for Allegri’s side, with their total of nine fewer than six clubs, and they have scored one or fewer in their last three.

Monza to win on Friday is 11/4 while the double chance bet is there at 4/5, but if you want some value while keeping in place an insurance option, Monza draw no bet at 13/8 may be the best call.