Serie A 2012, Week 35 Preview And Fixtures: Spicy In Sicily, But The Heat’s Really On In Udine

It’s really sounding like a broken record, I know, but the most interesting storyline at the end of this Serie A season is the race for third. No one really believes Juve will slip up, especially not when their last three matches are against Novara, Lecce and Cagliari, so the scudetto is almost certainly sown up. Relegation is a bit more interesting -- Cesena’s already grabbed a spot in Serie B, and Novara will almost certainly follow, but Lecce are still fighting with all their might to stay up. If they do, it will be at Genoa’s expense (and do we really want to see what the Ultras will do in that situation?)

So it’s third place, then, that should be given the most attention. The week ends with the battle between Udinese and Lazio, currently fifth and third respectively. With Lazio’s injured list currently filling more pages than a boxed set of Harry Potter, it might seem like this would be an easy enough win for the zebrette, but Francesco Guidolin has appeared out of answers for the last month. Anything but all three points for Lazio gives Napoli the opportunity to reclaim third. The partenopei have the most to lose if they miss out on Champions League football -- say goodbye to El Matador, Naples -- but with Roma’s entire squad spending Saturday at anger-management sessions, there should be little to trouble the visitors. Which is exactly why Napoli will lose, natch. And with Inter’s victory over Cesena all but certain, the nerazzurri could end the week in joint third-place.

Oh, and there’s a derby, too. The Sicilian Derby is always great fun, but with Catania’s outstanding season and Palermo’s spectacular downward spiral, it’ll likely be even tastier than usual. An excellent way to start off your calcio weekend.