Both hovering above the Serie A drop zone, Genoa and Torino will fight for maximum points when they clash at Stadio Ferraris on Sunday.
Neither side is safe from relegation, with the Grifone’s revival recently stalling and Toro tumbling down the table.
Match preview
After a succession of five-goal thrillers, which brought one win and two dramatic defeats, Genoa settled for a 0-0 away draw with Cremonese last weekend.
Having shut out their fellow strugglers at Stadio Zini, the Grifone have also kept a clean sheet in three of their last six Serie A matches – one more than across the previous 19 – so they remain highly unpredictable.
Though Daniele De Rossi made an immediate impact when replacing Patrick Vieira in the dugout, his team now lie just three points clear of the relegation places.
Yet, with more defensive discipline, De Rossi’s side could have been all but safe: they have let seven points slip from winning positions in 2026 alone, and a total of 20 so far this season.
The Ligurian club are also heavily reliant on set pieces, with centre-back Leo Ostigard featuring among their top scorers; a league-high 48% of their Serie A goals have resulted from dead-ball situations.
While they have only won three of 13 league games at the Ferraris this season, Genoa are unbeaten in their last three home games against Torino, keeping a clean sheet in each contest.
In fact, some six years and 334 minutes of top-flight football have passed since they last conceded at home to Toro, and De Rossi will be keen to extend that trend.
© Imago / Gribaudi-ImagePhoto
Following a 2-1 victory in October’s reverse fixture, Torino have won 10 and lost just one of the last 16 meetings, with their sole defeat coming nearly four years ago.
That record may suggest the Granata should expect to prevail on Sunday afternoon, but they are in dismal form, taking four points from their last six matches.
After arriving from Lazio last summer, coach Marco Baroni made a decent start, but since the November international break his team have conceded 28 goals and suffered nine defeats – both joint league highs.
A goal difference of -19 is only better than the bottom two and represents Toro’s worst at this stage of any season for 23 years; before heading to Genoa, they have conceded 10 times across their last three away matches.
Adding to a sense of crisis, their stadium was almost empty as fans protested against club president Urbano Cairo during last week’s 2-1 loss to Bologna.
That defeat – at home to a team enduring an even worse run of form – left them just six points clear of danger, piling even more pressure on this week’s trip to Marassi.
Genoa Serie A form:
W D W L L D
Torino Serie A form:
L L L W D L
Torino form (all competitions):
L L W L D L
Team News
© Iconsport / LaPresse
Genoa boss De Rossi may keep a settled side, despite failing to beat free-falling Cremonese last time out.
Sharp-shooting midfielder Ruslan Malinovskyi has scored in three of his last four appearances, while star striker Lorenzo Colombo recently equalled his best tally of six goals in a Serie A season.
Only back-up goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist is ruled out by injury, as Roma loanee Tommaso Baldanzi was passed fit for last week’s game and should again be named on the bench.
Like Colombo, Torino captain Nikola Vlasic now has six Serie A strikes this season, having topped up his tally against Bologna.
His input may be required on Sunday, as Che Adams has just been ruled out until next month with a thigh injury: ex-Genoa striker Giovanni Simeone will therefore vie with Duvan Zapata, Alieu Njie and Sandro Kulenovic to feature up front.
While Rafa Obrador, Tino Anjorin and Ardian Ismajli are also sidelined, Ivan Ilic has resumed full training.
Genoa possible starting lineup:
Bijlow; Marcandalli, Ostigard, Vasquez; Norton-Cuffy, Frendrup, Malinovskyi, Ellertsson, Martin; Vitinha, Colombo
Torino possible starting lineup:
Paleari; Marianucci, Maripan, Coco; Pedersen, Casadei, Prati, Lazaro; Vlasic; Simeone, Kulenovic
We say: Genoa 2-1 Torino
Two teams with a suspect defence should serve up goals at Marassi, knowing that victory would improve their survival prospects while harming a rival.
As Genoa have the more potent attack, a partisan home crowd should roar them over the line.
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