Despite Fiorentina’s fifth place in the Serie A standings at the beginning of this matchday, Sunday’s clash at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona against Napoli has all the makings of a top-four six-pointer. Let’s look at our match preview for this contest.
After an underwhelming three-match winless league run (D2, L1), Napoli boss Rudi Garcia has steadied the ship with back-to-back victories over Udinese and Lecce. Partenopei picked the Friulians apart with a mammoth 4-1 win in their last Serie A outing at the Maradona, with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia on the scoresheet for the first time since March.
Napoli refused to rest on their laurels as they put four unanswered goals past Lecce in a landslide 4-0 triumph at Stadio Via del Mare last weekend to stay within touching distance of the leading duo Inter and Milan. Unfortunately for Garcia, his side couldn’t transfer their domestic momentum to the continental form.
Real Madrid’s visit to southern Italy proved a tall order for Napoli as they let an early lead slip through their fingers en route to going down 3-2 to the 14-time Champions League winners on Tuesday. Midweek European action wasn’t kind to Fiorentina either, with the Tuscan outfit fighting back from a 2-0 deficit to hold Ferencvaros to a 2-2 home draw on Thursday.
But it’s worth mentioning that Vincenzo Italiano seized the opportunity of a less significant Europa Conference League fixture to hand rest to numerous first-team stars. Fresh legs could make all the difference in Naples as Fiorentina bid to leapfrog their hosts in the standings with another win beneath Mount Vesuvius.
Match Preview
Napoli
Since a scoreless draw in December 2017, Napoli’s last five home meetings with Fiorentina have fluctuated between victories (3) and defeats (2). With four of those five encounters seeing the winner on the day keep a clean sheet, flying out of the traps could be of utmost importance.
Napoli can draw confidence from their free-scoring form at a sluggish start of their Scudetto defense. Garcia’s men have bagged multiple goals in five of their seven Serie A games this season, notably getting on the scoresheet before halftime in all three on home turf.
After firing eight past Udinese and Lecce, Napoli could match a historic feat on Sunday by netting 3+ goals in three consecutive Serie A outings for only the third time.
Player to Watch: Victor Osimhen
Despite all the off-field problems, Osimhen boasts five goals after the opening seven Serie A rounds. On top of that, he has found the back of the net in the last two clashes between Napoli and Fiorentina at this stadium.
Fiorentina
Level on points with Napoli at the start of this round, Fiorentina (14) could head into October’s international break inside the top four if they can defy the odds on Sunday. Interestingly, La Viola’s current position in the Serie A standings is higher than they managed in 37 out of 38 matchdays last season.
That probably best illustrates the confidence streaming through the visitors’ wins going into this showdown. Fiorentina breezed past newcomers Cagliari 3-0 on Monday, making it three wins in four league matches (D1) since a 4-0 demolition at the hands of Inter in early September.
Player to Watch: M’Bala Nzola
While Nicolas Gonzalez remains Fiorentina’s standout performer, Nzola could prove a catalyst to topple Napoli this weekend after opening his La Viola account against Cagliari.
Team News
While Juan Jesus’ return date goes beyond the international break, there’s an outside chance for Amir Rrahmani to overcome his thigh injury in time to make Sunday’s squad. But Garcia should stick with Leo Ostigard and Natan as his center-back pairing after the two excelled in recent Serie A games.
In attack, Matteo Politano, who has already matched his last season’s three-goal tally in the elite society, should start alongside usual suspects Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Osimhen.
Unlike Napoli, Fiorentina will enter this round plagued by injuries to several key first-team players. Captain Cristiano Biraghi won’t take this trip after sustaining an ankle injury against Frosinone. Dodo and Yerry Mina are still on the sidelines for La Viola. The same goes for injury-prone playmaker Gaetano Castrovilli.
Napoli vs Fiorentina Potential Lineups
Napoli (4-3-3): Alex Meret; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Leo Ostigard, Natan, Mario Rui; Andre-Frank Zambco Anguissa, Stanislav Lobotka, Piotr Zielinski; Matteo Politano, Victor Osimhen, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Fiorentina (4-2-3-1): Pietro Terracciano; Michael Kayode, Nemanja Milenkovic, Lucas Martinez Quarta, Fabiano Parisi; Arthur Melo, Alfred Duncan; Nicolas Gonzalez, Giacomo Bonaventura, Josip Brekalo; M’Bala Nzola.
Napoli vs Fiorentina Prediction
This contest has a high-scoring drama written all over it, given each side’s capacity to score in abundance. But we’d stick with Napoli as a better pick for a win, though Fiorentina will likely put at least one ball past Alex Meret.
Prediction: Napoli Win
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