Saturday’s Serie A action gets underway at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, where second-placed Napoli entertain 14th-placed Udinese. The Partenopei boast genuine hopes of lifting their first Scudetto since the 1989/90 campaign, but any slip-up here could cost them dearly.
Serie A title-bidders Napoli have reached a ‘make or break’ point after alternating between victories and defeat across their last three league outings. Inspired by a dramatic 2-1 win away to Hellas Verona in the previous round, Luciano Spalletti’s team will be looking to maintain the grip on top-placed Milan.
Despite fighting relegation virtually this entire season, Udinese could prove a stern test for the southern giants. Unbeaten in their last four Serie A matches (W1, D3), Gabriele Cioffi’s men have held non-other than Milan, Lazio and Roma to identical 1-1 draws to bolster their survival hopes and steer themselves further away from the bottom three.
Match Preview
Napoli
Following a brace of victories over Udinese’s fellow bottom-half rivals Sampdoria and Salernitana back in January, Napoli have gone winless in their last two Serie A matches at home (D1, L1).
Including a 1-0 loss to Milan in a top-table six-pointer earlier in March, the Partenopei have suffered four defeats across their last seven home league games. That’s as many reverses as they had in their previous 35 Serie A outings at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona (W25, D6).
Napoli’s form wobble in front of a famously raucous home crowd sounds surprising, especially considering they’ve opened the scoring in three of their last four Serie A home fixtures. But things should go back to ‘normal’ on Saturday, as they meet the Udinese side they’ve defeated in all seven previous top-flight encounters in southern Italy.
Udinese
Udinese have established a habit of dropping points on the road, alternating between stalemates and defeats across their last four Serie A away matches (D2, L2).
Seeking their first league victory on hostile turf in 2022, Cioffi’s men will have to improve in the front third. The Friulians have failed to get on the scoresheet in three of their four Serie A away fixtures since the calendar year flipped to 2022. That’s a massive issue as they are set to encounter the league’s best defence.
Udinese’s bid to pull off an upset in Naples could quickly sink if they concede first. A lack of the bounce-back ability has seen them go winless in all seven away league games in which they shipped the opening goal this season (D2, L5). Adding to this sentiment, Udinese have just a single win to their name across their last 12 Serie A travels (D5, L6).
Napoli vs Udinese Predicted Lineups
Napoli Potential Starting XI (4-2-3-1): David Ospina; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Amir Rrahmani, Kalidou Koulibaly, Faouzi Ghoulam; Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Fabian Ruiz; Matteo Politano, Piotr Zielinski, Lorenzo Insigne; Victor Osimhen.
Udinese Potential Starting XI (3-5-2): Marco Silvestri; Rodrigo Becao, Marvin Zeegelaar, Pablo Mari; Nahuel Molina, Tolgay Arslan, Roberto Pereyra, Mato Jajalo, Destiny Udogie; Gerard Deulofeu, Beto.
Napoli vs Udinese Prediction
With all due respect to Udinese’s utmost efforts to lift themselves above the drop zone, this match could be well beyond their limits. Napoli cannot afford to drop any points here, and we expect Spalletti’s team to showcase their Scudetto credentials.
After overcoming a long-term injury, Napoli standout striker Victor Osimhen is firing on all cylinders once again, leading his charges at Bentegodi with a match-winning brace last time out. And when the Nigerian hits his stride, not many defences in Serie A can cope with him.
Anything other than Napoli’s triumph would be nothing short of a sensation. Yet, Udinese deserve the benefit of the doubt, as we back them to find the net at the very least.
Predicted Scoreline: Napoli 3-1 Udinese