Sampdoria and Torino meet in the Coppa Italia on Thursday evening with the two clubs currently sitting in the bottom half of the Serie A standings.
Despite the sides occupying 14th and 13th-place respectively, they both posted important victories in the top flight over the weekend.
Match preview
Sampdoria went into the November international break having collected just four points from eight matches, leaving them as clear candidates for relegation.
Fortunately for Roberto D'Aversa, his side have improved over the past month, posting three wins from five games to move eight points clear of the drop zone.
While I Blucerchiati remain a work in progress under their current boss, the signs are there that they can enjoy a much more productive second half of the campaign.
Goals have not been an issue for this team with veteran midfielder Antonio Candreva continuing to roll back the years with six goals and five assists in Serie A.
Sampdoria reached this stage of the competition with a dramatic 3-2 victory over Alessandria, twice coming from behind before netting two decisive goals shortly after the break.
For the first time since September, Torino also feel like a team on the up, a consequence of this group of players finally adapting to Ivan Juric.
Their defensive record continues to stand out in the bottom half of the table with just 18 goals being conceded in 17 games, but they are now performing more consistently in the final third.
Two own goals have aided their cause during a three-match unbeaten streak, and Il Toro probably should have collected more than five points having led in each of that triple-header.
Torino are fortunate to have reached this stage of the Coppa Italia having required a penalty shootout to finally see off Cremonese.
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Team News
With their most recent outing coming on Friday, D'Aversa may see little reason to make mass changes to his Sampdoria XI.
Radu Dragusin may be given a rare opportunity at right-back, while Julian Chabot is an alternative to Omar Colley in the centre.
Veteran forward Fabio Quagliarella will also hope to come back into the team, potentially replacing Francesco Caputo, with Kristoffer Askildsen an option in midfield.
Alessandro Buongiorno will almost certainly be recalled to the Torino backline with Bremer only lasting 45 minutes of the win over Bologna.
Ola Aina should feature in one of the wing-back roles, while Josip Brekalo will expect to take up a position in the final third.
Sampdoria possible starting lineup:
Audero; Dragusin, Yoshida, Chabot, Augello; Candreva, Ekdal, Silva, Askildsen; Quagliarella, Gabbiadini
Torino possible starting lineup:
Milinkovic-Savic; Zima, Buongiorno, Rodriguez; Aina, Lukic, Pobega, Vojvoda; Brekalo, Pjaca; Zaza
We say: Sampdoria 1-2 Torino
Having ended their losing run at the weekend, Sampdoria will feel more optimistic that they can overcome their improving opponents. However, we feel that the visitors, helped by their stronger defence, will be able to edge this contest in the latter stages.
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