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

Stadio Diego Armando Maradona forms the backdrop for a heavyweight Serie A top-table six-pointer between Napoli and Inter. Saturday’s clash in Naples could decide one of the most intense Scudetto races in recent memory.

Napoli seemed to have had an upper hand on Inter until not long ago. However, the home side’s form has recently fallen off a cliff. After a gut-wrenching run of three consecutive league draws, Antonio Conte’s side slipped to a dismal 2-1 defeat at newcomers Como last weekend.

With Napoli up the creek without a paddle, Inter seized the opportunity to move a point clear at the table’s summit pre-round. Therefore, the Partenopei can ill afford a slip-up in this mouth-watering clash, especially with third-placed Atalanta only three points off.

The same goes for Inter, whose recent form can’t inspire much confidence either. Indeed, Lautaro Martinez netted a fortunate header to inspire the reigning Serie A champions to a narrow 1-0 home win against bottom-half Genoa last weekend.

Inter offered a more reassuring performance in midweek Coppa Italia action, beating Lazio 2-0 at Giuseppe Meazza. In doing so, Simone Inzaghi’s charges set up a blockbuster semi-final tie against fellow San Siro rivals Milan in April.

However, there’s a more pressing matter they must attend to.

Match Preview

Napoli

Napoli are one of only four Serie A sides to have won none of the last four league matches, with the other three stuck in the drop zone pre-round! That probably best illustrates the depth of the crisis at the Maradona Stadium ahead of the most significant encounter of the season.

Halting that underwhelming streak hinges on defying the recent head-to-head history, with Napoli going winless in nine of their last 11 Serie A games against Inter (D4, L6), including a 1-1 draw in November’s controversial 1-1 draw at the San Siro.

Conte has since waged a media war against his former employers, who could condemn him to a fifth consecutive winless Serie A outing for the first time in his managerial career. However, the highly-rated tactician has had Inter’s number throughout his illustrious tenure in the dugout.

Indeed, the Napoli boss has avoided defeat in all seven previous managerial duels with the Nerazzurri (W4, D3), handing the home fans hope that the Partenopei could return to the win column for the first time since late January.

Inter

Despite seeing off Genoa to leapfrog Napoli into the summit, Inter’s recent Serie A showings have lacked conviction. The visitors have alternated between winning and losing across their last four league matches (W2, L2), with both defeats coming on the road.

Furthermore, Inter failed to get on the scoresheet in both losses, including a humiliating 3-0 thrashing at Fiorentina a fortnight ago. As if that’s not chastening enough, Inzaghi’s lads have won none of their last three away league clashes against top-eight sides (D1, L2).

If there was a time to snap this rotten patch, it’s now. With another titanic away game against Atalanta waiting around the corner, Inter must turn their away fortunes around quickly. Consecutive wins ‘to nil’ across their last two Serie A visits to Naples should bolster the traveling team’s spirit.

Yet, Inter must deal with another distraction as they have the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie against Feyenoord lined up for next Wednesday. Meanwhile, it’s worth noting that they’ve not scored more than once in five of their last six competitive matches on the road.

Team News

Napoli will be without two vital first-team members today. In addition to Brazilian winger David Neres, Conte lost standout midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa to injury in the late stages of last weekend’s game against Como. Wingback Pasquale Mazzocchi is also on the sidelines.

On the other hand, Inter boss Inzaghi can’t count on first-choice goalkeeper Yann Sommer and second-string defender Carlos Augusto. Injuries to Nicola Zalewski and Matteo Darmian have aggravated the crisis on the wing, heightening the pressure on Denzel Dumfries and Federico Dimarco.

Napoli vs Inter Potential Starting Line-ups

Napoli (3-5-2): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Buongiorno; Politano, Billing, Lobotka, McTominay, Spinazzola; Raspadori, Lukaku.

Inter (3-5-2): J. Martinez; Pavard, Acerbi, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, L. Martinez.

Napoli vs Inter Prediction

Despite beating Napoli’s haul of 42 Serie A goals by 17, Inter will face the division’s best defensive side. Conte’s charges have only conceded 21 goals this term, including a league-low two second-half strikes at home.

Given the stakes, this could be another hard-fought game with only a handful of chances on both ends. Therefore, we expect Conte and Inzaghi to share the spoils again.