Off-form Hellas Verona enter the penultimate gameweek in Serie A, aiming to end a seven-match winless run against the league's form side, Como, at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi.
Cesc Fabregas's men winning four in a row last month saw the Spaniard rewarded with the Serie A Coach of the Month award for April, as the Lariani bid for a seventh consecutive win on Sunday.
Match preview
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Verona head into round 37 in Serie A almost assured of their top-flight status for another year; however, they are still casting nervous glances at the chasing pack.
With five points separating Paolo Zanetti's team from Lecce in 18th and Empoli in 19th, the Mastiffs are not mathematically safe.
Those fears are heightened given their ongoing run of results that have seen Zanetti's men secure four points from the 21 on offer since their 1-0 success at Udinese in mid-March.
That success accounts for the 15th-placed club's only win in 10 matches, a streak that could extend to 11 if they fall to defeat against in-form opponents.
Supporters at the Bentegodi may expect that outcome, considering their six-match winless run against Como in Serie A, which could become seven if both teams' form is taken into account.
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Fabregas's troops have emulated Lazio's 1972-73 side as the only promoted team to win at least six consecutive games in the same season.
While that Lazio iteration went on to claim eight victories between February and April of that year, Como aim to come within one victory of matching the Biancocelesti side by claiming their seventh in a row.
The promoted team have flourished on their return to the top flight after 21 years away and could secure a top-half finish if they earn maximum points at the Bentegodi.
The 10th-placed Lariani are four points clear of Torino in 11th with six points left to play for, highlighting the advantage they have over the Maroons.
Keen to seal that top-10 finish, the Voltiani enter Sunday's fixture as the favourites against a Verona side that have won just one of their last 12 on home soil.
Having secured maximum points in the reverse fixture, a 3-2 success in Lombardy, the Lariani will back themselves to complete a double over this weekend's hosts for the first time in Serie A.
Team News
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Tomas Suulov and Ondrej Duda are suspended for the hosts, while Abdou Harroui is absent due to a long-term knee injury.
Verona will assess the trio of Pawel Dawidowicz, Grigoris Kastanos and Cheikh Niasse, though their issues are understood to be mild.
While Casper Tengstedt leads the goalscoring charts for the Mastiffs, the six-goal forward has not scored since 2025, and the Benfica loanee hopes to end his five-month drought this weekend.
Fabregas's men are unlikely to have Alberto Dossena, Assane Diao and Sergi Roberto available due to injury.
Although top-scorer Diao (eight goals) is out with a foot injury, the in-form away side can rely on Gabriel Strefezza, whose four match-winning goals have come from his total of six in Serie A.
Hellas Verona possible starting lineup:
Montipo; Ghilardi, Coppola, Dawidowicz; Tchatchoua, Serdar, Bernede, Frese; Niasse; Tengstedt, Sarr
Como possible starting lineup:
Butez; Vojvoda, Goldaniga, Kempf, Moreno; Cunha, Caqueret; Perrone, Paz, Strefezza; Douvikas
We say: Hellas Verona 0-2 Como
Despite Diao's absence for Como, it is challenging to look beyond an away victory against a Verona side that have failed to score in four of their previous five top-flight games, and their seven-match winless run could become eight against the league's form team.
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