Genoa vs Udinese preview - Bianconeri boss urges caution

Posted Sunday, February 17, 2013 by PA

Udinese may be closer to securing Champions League football for next season than playing in Serie B, but head coach Francesco Guidolin is still looking over his shoulder.

The Bianconeri leapfrogged Catania into seventh place with last week's 1-0 victory over Torino, a fourth consecutive home win that edged the Friulian club to within eight points of third place.

There is a 15-point cushion between Udinese and the bottom three but Guidolin has put plans for another European adventure to the back of his mind for the time being.

Ahead of the game at Genoa, he told La Repubblica: "I don't know if we can stay where we are, we need to live day by day, improving both the quality of our play and our league position if possible.

"We need to show the same humility and ambition we have shown over the last few years.

"Europe? We're proud to be competing among the most prestigious teams this year, but I'm only thinking about survival at this point."

Goalkeeper Zeljko Brkic, defender Emmanuel Badu and midfielder Giampiero Pinzi are unavailable through injury and international commitments, with Brazilian defender Danilo serving a one-match ban as Udinese look to claim only their second away victory over Genoa in eight attempts.

One man planning to stand in their way is Rossoblu defender Daniele Portanova, who has singled out Antonio Di Natale as Udinese's dangerman.

He told the Corriere dello Sport: "Udinese are coming on Sunday and we must be especially wary of Di Natale.

"He is a fantastic striker who regularly proves how excellent Italian footballers can be, but we won't let him celebrate his 150th goal (for Udinese) at the Marassi."

Midfielder Bosko Jankovic and striker Antonio Floro Flores will not feature due to injury, but Genoa head coach Davide Ballardini can be confident of his side's chances, having picked up five points from his first three games in charge.

The two sides could not be separated at the Stadio Friuli in September but the last three meetings between Genoa and Udinese at the Marassi have produced 14 goals.