Preview: Fiorentina vs. Sampdoria - prediction, team news, lineups

Sampdoria will look to add a third straight Serie A victory on Tuesday, when they travel to Fiorentina.

The hosts remain seventh in the Italian top flight following an inconsistent run, while their visitors have climbed to 15th spot thanks to their improvement.

Match preview

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A defeat to Empoli last time out left Fiorentina in seventh place, after they looked set to pick up all three points from the away trip.

Vincenzo Italiano's side led 1-0 through Dusan Vlahovic heading into the final five minutes, only for Filippo Bandinelli to draw the hosts level and Andrea Pinamonti to hit the winner two minutes later to cruelly deny the away side any points.

That followed an eye-catching 4-3 win over title-chasing AC Milan, as Alfred Duncan, Riccardo Saponara and Vlahovic put them three goals ahead, before the latter added an insurance goal when their lead looked to be under pressure.

The problem for I Viola has been consistency, with Italiano's men having now alternated between defeats and victories for the last seven outings, failing to capitalise on slips from the likes of Roma in the top five as a result.

They will now hope to correct their form and make an important return to winning ways on Tuesday to act as the foundations for long-term improvement.

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The visitors arrive with renewed confidence, having arrested a slump with back-to-back wins.

Sampdoria headed into the recent international break on the back of consecutive defeats to Atalanta, Torino and Bologna, leaving them in the drop zone with just nine points from their opening 12 games.

Roberto D'Aversa's side have returned from the break in style though, firstly posting their third win of the season last Sunday as a Francesco Di Tacchio own goal and an Antonio Candreva finish saw them hand fellow strugglers Salernitana a 2-0 defeat.

I Blucerchiati then made it back-to-back victories at the weekend, with Candreva again on the scoresheet alongside Albin Ekdal and Nicola Murru as they overturned a one-goal deficit to beat Hellas Verona 3-1 on home soil.

Having now risen to 15th spot thanks to their impressive rebound, D'Aversa's men will be keen to continue building momentum with what would be an impressive away result on Tuesday.

Team News

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Fiorentina will remain without centre-back Majita Nastasic and midfielder Erick Pulgar due to injuries, but they did welcome defender Nikola Milenkovic back last time out after a suspension.

Croatian forward Dusan Vlahovic has attracted plenty of attention from across Europe so far this campaign, having hit a league-high tally of 11 goals in 14 Serie A appearances, and he will continue to lead the line with confidence.

He could again be flanked by Riccardo Saponara and Jose Callejon, although Nicolas Gonzalez will also be keen to feature in the front three.

Having recording back-to-back wins heading into Tuesday, Sampdoria may again field an unchanged side after the same starting XI secured all three points last time out.

Winger Antonio Candreva will continue to be a key man in the attack, having found the net in both victories, while Francesco Caputo and veteran Fabio Quagliarella should again be trusted to lead the line.

Fiorentina possible starting lineup:
Terracciano; Odriozola, Milenkovic, L Martinez, Biraghi; Bonaventura, Torreira, Duncan; N Gonzalez, Vlahovic, Saponara

Sampdoria possible starting lineup:
Audero; Bereszynski, Ferrari, Colley, Augello; Candreva, Thorsby, Ekdal, Verre; Caputa, Quagliarella

We say: Fiorentina 1-1 Sampdoria

While Fiorentina's fluctuating form shows they tend to bounce back well from the setback of a defeat, they take on a Sampdoria side full of confidence on Tuesday.

Vlahovic is bound to cause problems for the visitors, but we back I Blucerchiati to leave with a hard-fought point as their improvement continues.

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