Last weekend saw reigning champs Juventus take one step closer towards making it an unprecedented sixth straight Scudetto. The Bianconeri equaled their record of most consecutive home wins as they made it a 25th sans defeat by defeating title rivals Roma 1-0. Meanwhile, the race for second spot is heating up, and fans may see some big changes in the rankings by the time matchday 18 concludes on Thursday.
Facts and Stats ahead of Serie A Matchday 18
Here are five things you may or may not know ahead of the upcoming round of fixtures starting today:
Serie A Matchday 18 - U.S. viewing schedule
Below is the full U.S. schedule for round 18 of Serie A action starting this Tuesday
Dec. 20: Atalanta vs Empoli on RAI International, beIN SPORTS USA, fuboTV, beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A. at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 21: Inter vs Lazio on beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 22: Cagliari vs Sassuolo on beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 22: Fiorentina vs Napoli on beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 22: Palermo vs Pescara on beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 22: Roma vs Chievo on fuboTV, beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., beIN SPORTS USA at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 22: Sampdoria vs Udinese on beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
Dec. 22: Torino vs Genoa on beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., fuboTV at 11:45 AM PST/2:45 PM EST
*For more information, please navigate to each match's specific page
Serie A - Matchday 18 overview
As things stand, Juventus enjoy a whopping seven point lead over Roma. The Bianconeri also have a game in hand as they will not play this week due to Supercoppa Italiana committments. AC Milan also will have an extra game to play as their own match was suspended in light of the Diavolo's upcoming tie with La Vecchia Signora in Qatar. The Giallorossi will hope to narrow this gap to four as they welcome Chievo on Thursday, and with both Napoli as well as cross-town rivals Lazio on their heels, Luciano Spalletti's troops will be loath to drop any more points.
The Partenopei take on Fiorentina, and Maurizio Sarri's men will be looking to take advantage of the Viola's two game losing streak to potentially overtake Roma into second spot. Meanwhile, Lazio lock horns with Inter on Wednesday. Both teams have won their past two games, but arguably the Aquile have been more solid than the Nerazzurri and will seek to head into the Christmas holiday potentially in a top three - or even better, a top two - spot.
Serie A - Matchday 18 standings
Here's how things stand so far after 17 rounds in the 2016/2017 Serie A season. How will it look after matchday 18 concludes?
| Pos. | Team | MP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | P | Form | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Internazionale | 33 | 27 | 5 | 1 | 79 | 18 | +61 | 86 | WDWWD | |
| 2 | Milan | 33 | 21 | 6 | 6 | 64 | 39 | +25 | 69 | LDWWW | |
| 3 | Juventus | 33 | 18 | 10 | 5 | 47 | 26 | +21 | 64 | DDWLD | |
| 4 | Bologna | 33 | 17 | 11 | 5 | 48 | 26 | +22 | 62 | WDDWW | |
| 5 | Roma | 32 | 16 | 7 | 9 | 57 | 38 | +19 | 55 | LWDWD | |
| 6 | Atalanta | 32 | 16 | 6 | 10 | 59 | 37 | +22 | 54 | WDLWD | |
| 7 | Lazio | 33 | 16 | 4 | 13 | 42 | 35 | +7 | 52 | WWLWW | |
| 8 | Napoli | 33 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 50 | 41 | +9 | 49 | LDWLD | |
| 9 | Fiorentina | 32 | 13 | 8 | 11 | 45 | 36 | +9 | 47 | WDLLD | |
| 10 | Torino | 33 | 11 | 13 | 9 | 31 | 29 | +2 | 46 | DDLWW | |
| 11 | Monza | 33 | 11 | 10 | 12 | 35 | 43 | -8 | 43 | LDLLW | |
| 12 | Genoa | 33 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 35 | 40 | -5 | 39 | LDWDD | |
| 13 | Lecce | 33 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 30 | 48 | -18 | 35 | WWLDW | |
| 14 | Cagliari | 33 | 7 | 11 | 15 | 36 | 56 | -20 | 32 | DDWDL | |
| 15 | Hellas Verona | 33 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 31 | 44 | -13 | 31 | WDLDL | |
| 16 | Empoli | 33 | 8 | 7 | 18 | 26 | 48 | -22 | 31 | WLWLL | |
| 17 | Udinese | 32 | 4 | 16 | 12 | 30 | 48 | -18 | 28 | LLDLW | |
| 18 | Frosinone | 33 | 6 | 10 | 17 | 40 | 63 | -23 | 28 | DDDDL | |
| 19 | Sassuolo | 33 | 6 | 8 | 19 | 39 | 65 | -26 | 26 | LDDDL | |
| 20 | Salernitana | 33 | 2 | 9 | 22 | 26 | 70 | -44 | 15 | LLDLL |
