Preview: Monza vs Udinese - prediction, team news, lineups

Defeated on their return to the top flight, Monza will seek maximum points when they host Udinese on Saturday evening.

While they were ultimately swept aside by the reigning Serie A champions, their visitors held out for a draw against Como.

Match preview

After bouncing back from relegation at the first attempt, Monza will be targeting top-flight survival this season, but expectations were relatively low last weekend.

The Biancorossi's comeback started with perhaps the toughest possible fixture - a Lombardy derby against Inter Milan at San Siro.

Though Gustavo Varela's first Serie A goal saw them go into the break on level terms, the visitors then folded during the second half and Inter went on to win 4-1.

So, new boss Ivan Juric - who recently started with a 3-0 Coppa Italia win over Avellino - will seek his first points again this week, when Monza return to home turf.

Albeit against second-tier opposition, they won 15 of 21 games at U-Power Stadium last season, and results there could make all the difference between staying up and going down.

However, since first appearing in Serie A four years ago, Monza have only picked up one point from three home games against Udinese.

With history on their side, the Fruilani can travel to Lombardy full of confidence, having also made a good start to the 2026-27 campaign.

When they returned to competitive action earlier this month, Kosta Runjaic and co eliminated Padova from the Coppa Italia, setting up next week's clash with regional rivals Venezia.

Then, they started strongly against ambitious Como on Serie A's opening matchday; Hassane Kamara's deft chip put them in front, before they had to settle for a home draw.

Now in his third year at the club, Runjaic is looking to build on a 10th-placed finish last season, continuing a steady trajectory of improvement.

Solid away form certainly played a big part, as Udinese posted eight wins on the road in 2025-26 - more than Atalanta and Lazio.

Monza Serie A form:

Monza form (all competitions):

Udinese Serie A form:

Udinese form (all competitions):

Team News

Monza were missing three midfielders last weekend - Leonardo Colombo, Inter loanee Ebeneezer Akinsanmiro and club captain Matteo Pessina.

Wing-backs Patrick Ciurria and Idrissa Toure are both set to miss out again, but there has been some better news for Juric.

First-choice goalkeeper Demba Thiam and experienced striker Dany Mota can return from suspension, while Akinsanmiro should recover from an illness that stopped him facing his parent club.

After scoring on his league debut, Varela is likely to lead the hosts' attack, but Udinese's centre-forward selection looks less clear cut.

Idrissa Gueye started against Como, but Vakoun Bayo and last term's top scorer Keinan Davis are also in contention - providing the latter overcomes a flexor problem.

Nicolo Zaniolo and Matteo Palma picked up injuries last week, joining Alessandro Zanoli and Giorgi Chakvetadze on the sidelines; Christian Kabasele is still suspended.

Monza possible starting lineup:

Thiam; Kouadio, Delli Carri, Carboni; Birindelli, Ondoa, Mout, Mangas; Colpani, Mota; Varela

Udinese possible starting lineup:

Okoye; Abankwah, Solet, Bertola; Vojvoda, Karlstrom, Piotrowski, Kamara; Ekkelenkamp, Gomez; Gueye