Both teams to score looks worth supporting when Sassuolo welcome Juventus to Mapei Stadium on Sunday night.

Sassuolo have collected four points from their opening three Serie A matches, with all three fixtures producing goals at both ends.

That sequence continued last weekend as the Black and Greens played out an action-packed 2-2 draw away at Bologna.

They were also involved in a 1-1 draw at home to Frosinone in the Coppa Italia recently.

Juventus’ games have been less eventful, although the Old Lady arrive on the back of a 1-1 draw with AC Milan last weekend.

These sides also played out a 1-1 draw when they last met towards the end of last season, adding further weight to the case for each team to oblige.

Backing over 2.5 cards appeals when Sassuolo and Juventus face off in what I think will be a closely fought contest on Sunday night. 

The early-season evidence is based on a limited sample, but matches involving these sides have already produced plenty of bookings, particularly those featuring Juventus.

Each of the Turin giants’ opening three Serie A fixtures has cleared this line, returning respective card counts of 4, 5 and 4.

As for Sassuolo, each of their last two league games has produced exactly 4 cards, as did their 1-1 draw with Frosinone in the Coppa Italia. 

It is also worth noting that referee Juan Luca Sacchi showed exactly 4 cards in his only Serie A assignment of the season so far. 

That figure is consistent with his long-term numbers in the Italian top flight, where he has averaged 3.77 yellow cards across 78 matches.

Francisco Conceicao looks worth backing to register at least one shot on target when Juventus face Sassuolo.

The Portuguese forward is very much a shoot-on-sight merchant, firing off 9 attempts across his side’s opening three Serie A matches of the season.

Of those efforts, 3 came against AC Milan last weekend, with Conceicao hitting the target twice.

He also worked the opposition goalkeeper in Juventus’ previous away game at Frosinone.

His numbers from last season also make for encouraging reading, with Conceicao averaging 0.98 shots on target per game in Serie A.

Sassuolo have conceded an average of 15.00 shots per game and are yet to keep a clean sheet across their opening three league matches, so Conceicao should get ample opportunity to deliver another on-target effort.

I’m siding with Nemanja Matic to commit at least one foul when Sassuolo take on Juventus on Sunday night.

The experienced Serbian will sit at the base of the Sassuolo midfield, leaving him with plenty of defensive ground to cover against one of Serie A’s strongest sides.

Matic has committed 3 fouls across his last two Serie A appearances, including 2 in Sassuolo’s opening home game against Torino, where he was also shown a yellow card. 

It’s also worth noting that Matic collected 8 yellow cards and averaged 0.81 fouls per game in Serie A last season.

His likely battle with Douglas Luiz offers further encouragement, with the Juventus midfielder ranking among his side’s most fouled players this term, having already won 6 free-kicks.