Both sides will hope to get 2022 under way with a win on Sunday, as Udinese host top four contenders Atalanta, following late call-offs in their scheduled midweek fixtures.
Two of the eight teams to see their return to Serie A action delayed by COVID-19 outbreaks will convene only if the home side pass local public health protocols and have enough men left standing.
Match preview
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Having expected to resume their season after a positive first half, Atalanta's comeback from the winter break was among several cancelled in curious circumstances, after opponents Torino were placed in quarantine by Turin's health authorities.
As the virus-stricken visitors could not, therefore, travel to Bergamo on Thursday, the Nerazzurri were made to wait for 45 minutes at the Gewiss Stadium until the referee confirmed that their opposition would not turn up.
Head coach Gian Piero Gasperini will be ever more eager to get his side back on the pitch, as he saw their late-autumn charge towards the top of the table halted by a 4-1 thumping by Roma shortly before the break - barely a week after they suffered Champions League heartbreak at the hands of Villarreal.
Closing out an otherwise successful 2021 with a frustrating draw against his old club Genoa was also not what the Bergamaschi boss had in mind, so he will expect La Dea to fly out of the traps in Udine.
Not only did they end last year fourth in the Serie A standings, but Atalanta have also lost just three of their last 16 games in all competitions, including wins over both Napoli and Juventus.
They have built that success on away soil, too - claiming at least three more points on the road than any other side in the division - winning eight of their 10 away fixtures in the process. Indeed, they will seek to continue the league's longest ongoing unbeaten away run of 16 matches on Sunday - a streak which already represents their best ever in the top flight.
Furthermore, Atalanta have gone undefeated in their last eight league games against Udinese - in which they have scored at a rate of 2.8 goals per match - so precedent will be stacked in their favour this week.
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Despite recent history going against them in this match-up, Udinese did manage to hold their Lombardy counterparts to a 1-1 draw back in October, when top scorer Beto notched a stoppage-time equaliser in the reverse fixture at the Gewiss Stadium.
They have, though, lost two of their last three home games against Atalanta and have not won any of their last 14 Serie A matches against teams in the top four at the start of the day.
Such statistics notwithstanding, Gabriele Cioffi's men will surely be grateful to get back out on the Fruili turf this weekend, should they have sufficient numbers available to participate.
Udinese finished 2021 with successive four-goal wins in the Coppa Italia and Serie A - seeing off Crotone 4-0 in the cup before putting four past fellow strugglers Cagliari without reply - to improve their outlook for the new year ahead.
Cioffi has certainly made an impact since taking up the reins from predecessor Luca Gotti, whose side had previously gone five games without a win. They have therefore pulled clear of the drop zone, sitting 14th in the table, seven points clear of the bottom three with two games in hand.
Four draws from their last five home games in Serie A - including both of their most recent two - reflect Udinese's difficulties in the final third on home soil, and they will surely have to improve upon their average tally of just over one goal per game at the Dacia Arena if they are to overturn free-scoring Atalanta.
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Team News
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Gian Piero Gasperini has seen two of his Atalanta players sent into isolation following positive COVID-19 tests this week, so the Argentinian pairing of Jose Luis Palomino and goalkeeper Juan Musso will be unavailable, with the latter being replaced by Marco Sportiello between the posts.
Palomino's defensive colleague Rafael Toloi returned to full training earlier this week, and should now be fit enough to feature from the start. He is set to be joined by Merih Demiral and Berat Djimsiti in the back three, as Matteo Lovato has been moved out on loan to Cagliari.
Long-term injury victim Robin Gosens is nearing a comeback but still remains sidelined, Remo Freuler must serve a suspension, and top scorer Duvan Zapata misses out with a groin problem; his Colombian compatriot Luis Muriel deputises up front.
La Dea signed Sassuolo winger Jeremie Boga during the break, but the Ivory Coast international will be away at the Africa Cup of Nations for at least the next fortnight.
Meanwhile, Udinese have several players out of action due to COVID-19 infections, and Jean-Victor Makengo, Ilija Nestorovski and Marvin Zeegelar are among those who will not be available to Gabriele Cioffi.
The hosts also must do without midfield link-man Roberto Pereyra, who is recovering from a shoulder injury, so Gerard Deulofeu should again support Portuguese rookie Beto in attack.
Udinese possible starting lineup:
Padelli; Nuytinck, Becao, Perez; Udogie, Arslan, Walace, Molina; Pussetto, Deulofeu; Beto
Atalanta BC possible starting lineup:
Sportiello; Djimsiti, Demiral, Toloi; Hateboer, De Roon, Koopmeiners, Maehle; Pessina, Malinovskyi; Muriel
We say: Udinese 0-2 Atalanta BC
A number of factors are in Atalanta's favour ahead of this encounter at the Friuli, as not only do they possess the greater individual quality in the final third, but they are also completely fearless away from home.
Udinese, of course, have had a serious virus outbreak in their squad too, so the odds are against the Bianconeri salvaging even a point.
Top tip
Jonathan O'Shea
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Atalanta BC win with a probability of 55.46%. A draw had a probability of 23.7% and a win for Udinese had a probability of 20.8%.
The most likely scoreline for an Atalanta BC win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.78%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (10.17%) and 1-2 (9.75%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.28%), while for a Udinese win it was 1-0 (6.54%). The actual scoreline of 2-6 was predicted with a 0.1% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Atalanta BC would win this match.
