Saturday's match will be the 41st encounter in Serie A between Udinese and Hellas Verona. Up until this point in time the head-to-head record is fairly even - 13 Verona victories, 12 Udinese wins and 15 draws. Six of these 15 draws were 1-1, which is the most frequent result between the two teams, and the last time it happened was on 30 January 2023. The most recent fixture between the two teams saw Hellas overcome the Zebrette 1-0 at the Bentegodi, which is where Saturday’s match will take place.
The Hellas clash will be Udinese’s first match of the year, and in every opening fixture of the calendar year since 2016 the Friulians have got on the scoresheet. Kosta Runjaic's team have scored twice in each of their last two games, and if the team were to net two goals in Verona it would be the longest streak of scoring at least two goals in a game since autumn 2022. This same period also coincided with the last time that Udinese went on a winning run of more than two games, and if Runjaic’s men were to win on Saturday they would match this record.
Lorenzo Lucca's goal against Torino brought Udinese to a total of eight headed goals in Serie A this season, the second-best record in the division behind Atalanta. As for the percentage of total goals - 35% - only Getafe better them for headers in the top five European leagues. The Zebrette have also scored six goals from corners, a Serie A joint-best along with Inter. They also sit second for the percentage of clear goal opportunities converted (50%), while Hellas Verona are in first place with 53%.
If Lucca were to score against Hellas it would be the striker’s best scoring streak since he enjoyed a purple patch with Pisa in autumn 2021. The Italian international is also just one goal away from matching his total for the entire 2023/24 season. So far in this campaign Lucca has scored seven goals, including five headers, a league best. These goals have earnt Udinese nine points – no other player has directly contributed to so many points for their team. Lucca also scored his only brace in Serie A on 3 December 2023 against Hellas Verona. His strike partner, Florian Thauvin, is one assist away from recording 50 in the major European leagues and with the three provided so far in this Serie A season – combined with his five goals – means he’s already matched last season’s total of goals and assists.
Jaka Bijol and Christian Kabasele have positive memories of Hellas Verona. The Slovenian scored one of his four goals in Serie A in the 1-0 win at the Bentegodi on 3 October 2022, while the Belgian scored his first goal in Serie A in the 3-3 thriller at Bluenergy Stadium on 3 December 2023. Only one player in the current Udinese and Hellas squads has featured for both sides - Marco Davide Faraoni. The winger played for Udinese in the 2012/13 and 2016/17 seasons. Finally, if Jesper Karlstrom, Lorenzo Lucca and Kingsley Ehizibue were to feature at the Bentegodi, it would mean that they will have participated in all of the matches of the first half of the Serie A 2024/25 season.