Our prediction for this Coppa Italia match:
Sampdoria will be aiming to advance to the Italian Cup last 16 when they take on Ascoli on Thursday evening. La Samp have yet to record a win under new boss Dejan Stankovic, but the bookies still see them as favourites to beat I Picchi in front of home fans. Both Pussetto and Murru should be recalled to the starting XI, while Jeison Murillo and Manuel De Luca remain in the recovery room.
Ascoli, on the other hand, defeated Bari at Stadio San Nicola in their last Serie B game, with the team climbing to 11th place in the standings. Cristian Bucchi’s troops, though, will have a much bigger fish to fry against Sampdoria, who are desperate to return to winning ways. All Amato Ciciretti, Marcello Falzerano, and Alessandro Salvi are out of contention through injuries for the visiting side.
Highlighted Player (Jeison Murillo):
Jeison Murillo is a 24-year-old Colombian defender who plays for Inter Milan in Serie A. The centre back started in the youth teams of Deportivo Cali but made his senior professional bow with Udinese and Granada, as part of the partnership agreement between the clubs.
He moved on a permanent basis to Granada in 2011 but spent most of his time on loans at fellow Spanish league clubs Cadiz and Las Palmas. His talent was there for everyone to see and soon he would end up moving to Inter Milan in 2015. Murillo made his international debut for Colombia in 2014.
He was also a member of the 2015 Copa America squad and scored his solitary goal in national colors against Brazil. He would go on to win the “Best Young Player” of the tournament. Murillo is a hard-tackling no-nonsense centre back and is regarded as a ball-playing defender, which is almost a rarity in world football.