Serie A Preview: Parma vs Napoli – Team News, Line-ups & Prediction | OneFootball

Stadio Ennio Tardini sets the stage for a ‘make or break’ Serie A showdown between relegation-battling Parma and leaders Napoli. A lot is at stake for both teams, albeit for entirely different objectives.

Parma’s hopes of avoiding an immediate return to Serie B took another hit last weekend. Second-from-bottom Empoli netted a late winner to topple them 2-1 at Stadio Carlo Castellani. Losing Lautaro Valenti to a second yellow card midway through the first half set the tone for the Crusaders’ downfall in Tuscany.

Despite Parma’s dire run of just one point from their last three Serie A outings, they’re still narrowly outside the bottom three. However, they head into proceedings frantically looking over their shoulders, with 18th-placed Lecce four points behind. That does mean an unlikely win against title-bidding Napoli would secure survival with a game to spare.

Unfortunately for the Emilia-Romagna faithful, that’s easier said than done. The visitors are in greater need of three points after a gut-wrenching 2-2 home draw against Genoa last time out compromised their chances of lifting a second Scudetto in three years. Their slender lead over Inter is only one point ahead of the penultimate round.

With the second-placed reigning holders taking on Lazio, Napoli may finish the job this weekend with a fourth consecutive win against Parma. Yet, that’s a feat they’ve never achieved in their top-flight record, suggesting they must rewrite their history books to dethrone the Nerazzurri. With a potential title-clinching weekend on the horizon, demand for Napoli tickets is soaring as fans look to witness another historic success.

Match Preview

Parma

The home team’s form has been in freefall toward the end of the campaign. Indeed, Parma have only managed one win from their last ten league games (D6, L3). Despite that unenviable record, Cristiano Lucarelli believes Cristian Chivu’s side can hinder Napoli’s title quest via CalcioNapoli.

Visiting Napoli would be well-advised not to take Lucarelli’s warning lightly, given Parma’s habit of upsetting the division’s heavy-hitters at home. In addition to remarkable wins against AC Milan, Lazio, and Bologna, they held Inter and Juventus to high-scoring draws at the iconic Tardini Stadium.

However, recent slumps must have created panic among the home fans, and Napoli’s visit doesn’t bode well. A heartbreaking 2-1 defeat in August’s reverse fixture marked Parma’s third successive league loss against this opposition. Moreover, the Crusaders conceded precisely twice in each meeting.

Napoli

With title hopes on the line, Napoli must not let off-field distractions stand in their way. For instance, Antonio Conte knows better than to let growing speculation about Kevin De Bruyne’s arrival from Manchester City overshadow the immediate task ahead.

Despite last weekend’s slip-up, Napoli’s unbeaten league streak stands at ten matches (W6, D4). That alone should be enough to banish fear among the traveling faithful, as should Partenopei’s narrow 1-0 win at Lecce on their last Serie A travel.

Giacomo Raspadori was the architect of that win, but Napoli will likely turn to Scott McTominay to inspire another favorable result. The Scottish midfielder has been in scintillating form this season, racking up an eye-catching 15 goal contributions in his first Serie A campaign.

However, there’s a note of caution. Napoli have dropped points in both away league encounters against newly promoted clubs this season (D1, L1). Against this backdrop, they boast a near-perfect record against pre-round bottom-five sides (W8, D1).

Team News

In addition to the suspended Valenti, Parma cannot call upon several other first-team stars. Adrian Bernabe, Matteo Cancellieri, Gabriel Charpentier, Nahuel Estevez, Valentin Mihaila, Yordan Osorio, and Alessandro Vogliacco were all absent from last weekend’s trip to Empoli due to injuries.

On the other hand, Napoli may welcome star center-back Alessandro Buongiorno back from a thigh problem. However, Juan Jesus remains on the treatment table. Fortunately for Conte, the visitors haven’t suffered any fresh injury concerns down the final stretch.

Parma vs Napoli Potential Starting Line-ups

Parma (3-5-2): Suzuki; Del Prato, Leoni, Balogh; Valeri, Keita, Ondrejka, Sohm, Hainaut; Bonny, Pellegrino.

Napoli (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Olivera, Spinazzola; McTominay, Lobotka, Zambo Anguissa; Politano, Raspadori, Lukaku.

Parma vs Napoli Prediction

Parma are more than capable of giving Napoli a run for their money, but the Partenopei should get three precious points over the line. A single-goal margin wouldn’t surprise anyone, especially considering the nature of the visitors’ wins under Conte.