Napoli return to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona as newly-crowned Serie A champions to entertain Fiorentina on Sunday night. Even though this match is a classic definition of a ‘dead rubber,’ the hosts will want to celebrate a long-awaited success in style.
Victor Osimhen slotted home seven minutes after the break to hand Napoli a 1-1 draw at Udinese on Thursday. The Nigerian’s 22nd league goal of the season was enough to halt a second-longest period to elapse between two Scudetto wins, securing the Partenopei’s place at the podium for the first time since 1990.
In addition to landing only their third Serie A title, Luciano Spalletti’s men have become the third team in a three-points-per-win era to seal the crown with five games to spare. Fresh from booking their membership in this elite club, Napoli will be looking to avenge last weekend’s 1-1 home draw against Salernitana, which spoiled a long-overdue celebration party.
But Fiorentina are no pushovers and could add insult to injury on Sunday, especially now that they have nothing but pride left to play for down the final stretch. Wednesday’s goal-glutted 3-3 draw at ‘stalemate specialists’ Salernitana effectively ended the visitors’ faint hopes of grinding their way back into the European fight.
Winless in four of their last five Serie A matches (D3, L1), Vincenzo Italiano’s side could be forgiven for neglecting their domestic duties ahead of their Europa Conference League semi-final tie against Basel. Indeed, the prospect of winning European silverware for the first time in over six decades is at the forefront of Fiorentina’s mind.
Match Preview
Napoli
Complacency has become a genuine issue for Napoli following an otherwise phenomenal pursuit of a historic Serie A success. Spalletti’s men have dropped points in five of their last nine league outings (W4, D3, L2), having done so only three times in the first 24 rounds (W21, D2, L1). They’ve been particularly sloppy at home.
Since beating Atalanta in March, they’ve gone winless in their last three Serie A outings in Naples (D2, L1), including a dreadful 4-0 defeat to dethroned champions Milan in early April. However, Napoli’s prolificacy against Fiorentina at home has been off the charts, as they’ve netted an average of 2.3 goals per game in their last league H2Hs at the Maradona Stadium (W5, D1, L2).
Player to Watch: Victor Osimhen
After scoring a Scudetto-winning goal in Udine, Osimhen could set a new record on Sunday and become the most prolific African player in Serie A history. He and Milan legend George Weah are currently tied at 46 goals each.
Fiorentina
Fiorentina’s recent league form is not inspiring, but they’ve been a pleasure to watch for the neutrals. Their last three Serie A outings have featured precisely five goals each, highlighting the potential for a slugfest of a match. But Italiano’s men could end of the receiving end of it after conceding precisely three goals on their last two league travels (D1, L1).
Another poor defensive showing at Napoli could see Fiorentina let in at least three goals on three consecutive Serie A road trips for the first time since 1955. But there’s a silver lining as La Viola have claimed three victories in their last five league encounters against the Partenopei staged in the second half of the season (D1, L1).
Player to Watch: Giacomo Bonaventura
Bonaventura has scored a total of five Serie A goals against Napoli, which is the most he has netted against any opponent. However, none of these goals came during his time with Fiorentina.
Team News
With Giovanni Simeone back to the matchday squad against Udinese and Matteo Politano on the verge of recovery, Mario Rui remains the only high-profile absentee in the Napoli camp.
On the other hand, Fiorentina will take this trip without second-choice goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu, who’s still out with an Achilles injury. Lucas Martinez Quarta is also unavailable after accumulating yellow cards against Salernitana.
Napoli vs Fiorentina Potential Lineups
Napoli (4-3-3): Alex Meret; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Kim Min-jae, Amir Rrahmani, Mathias Olivera; Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Stanislav Lobotka, Piotr Zielinski; Hirving Lozano, Victor Osimhen, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Fiorentina (4-2-3-1): Pietro Terracciano; Dodo, Nikola Milenkovic, Igor, Cristiano Biraghi; Gaetano Castrovilli, Rolando Mandragora; Jonathan Ikone, Giacomo Bonaventura, Nicolas Gonzalez; Arthur Cabral.
Napoli vs Fiorentina Prediction
Though a result won’t change anything for either side in terms of the final placing, we expect Napoli to post their first home win in Serie A since early March and spice up the impending festival in southern Italy.
Prediction: Napoli Win
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