High-flying Serie A pacesetters Napoli make an exciting journey to the Mapei Stadium to face off against a resurgent Sassuolo side on Friday night. It will be the visitors’ final warm-up fixture ahead of their trip to Eintracht Frankfurt for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie next midweek.
Following a woeful run of six defeats from seven Serie A matches (D1), Sassuolo boss Alessio Dionisi has steadied the ship with an eye-catching four-game unbeaten league run (W2, D2). The Neroverdi fought back twice before halftime to hold Udinese to an enthralling 2-2 away draw last weekend but still paid a hefty price.
Standout forward Domenico Berardi picked up a muscle problem, which forced him off only 12 minutes into the game. It’s still uncertain whether he’ll be ready to take on Napoli, although those close to the Mapei camp are optimistic about having their talisman back in time. Berardi was instrumental as Sassuolo humbled defending Serie A champions Milan 5-2 a fortnight ago.
That triumph, coupled with a narrow 1-0 victory over top-four hopefuls Atalanta in their last home outing, gives the hosts a reason to look forward to Napoli’s visit. However, Sassuolo’s relentless visitors look unstoppable, with a 3-0 demolition of basement boys Cremonese last weekend extending their lead at the summit to 15 points.
Luciano Spalletti’s men can feel the taste of success, even though it’s only a midway point of the season. Having collected a whopping 59 points from 22 matches, Napoli boast the third-best points tally at this stage of a Serie A campaign in a three-points-per-win era, with only Juventus and Inter bettering that record (60).
Preview
Sassuolo
Sassuolo’s hopes of springing another upset are far-fetched, especially considering they’ve won just one of their 14 encounters against Napoli in Serie A (D6, L7). But they’ve at least held their esteemed visitors winless in their last two league clashes at the Mapei Stadium (D2), with both games seeing both sides score at least twice.
Against this backdrop, Dionisi’s men have netted one goal or fewer in their last four home outings in Serie A (W1, D1, L2), highlighting the significance of drawing first blood. Adding to this sentiment, Sassuolo has suffered three defeats in five home league fixtures after conceding the opening goal this season (W1, D1).
Player to Watch: Matheus Henrique
With Berardi’s availability for this game up in the air and Armand Lauriente banned, Sassuolo may rely on in-form midfielder Matheus Henrique to step up to the mark. Both of the Brazilian’s Serie A goals have come in the last three matches, suggesting he could be their danger man on Friday.
Napoli
Since a 1-0 defeat away to Inter at the turn of the new calendar year, Napoli have gone into overdrive, stitching together six straight league victories, five of which yielded multi-goal margins. On top of their stellar spell of form, the Partenopei boast an intimidating 11-match away record in Serie A this season (W9, D1, L1), including three consecutive wins by 2+ goals ‘to nil.’
Elif Elmas came on from the bench to seal his side’s thumping 3-0 win against Cremonese last time out. That was Napoli’s 12th league goal scored by a substitute this season, underlining the potential of the whole squad. With the Champions League journey to Frankfurt waiting in the wings, Spalletti must be thrilled to know he can rely on his second-string players to deliver the goods.
Player to Watch: Victor Osimhen
Victor Osimhen has been too hot to handle in 2023, scoring in six consecutive Serie A matches in the build-up to this fixture. He could become the first Napoli player to find the net in seven league outings on the spin in a three-points-per-win era.
Team News
Mert Muldur and Jeremy Toljan will be missing out with injuries, but Lauriente’s suspension may give Sassuolo a substantial headache. Even more so if Berardi fails to regain full fitness in time.
As for Napoli, Spalletti has his entire squad fit for this trip. However, there’s a feeling the Italian manager may rotate his team a bit to avoid any potential injury setback ahead of the Partenopei’s Champions League return.
Sassuolo vs Napoli Potential Lineups
Sassuolo (4-3-3): Andrea Consigli; Nadir Zortea, Martin Erlic, Ruan Tressoldi, Riccardo Marchizza; Matheus Henrique, Davide Frattesi, Pedro Obiang; Nedim Bajrami, Andrea Pinamonti, Emil Konradsen Ceide.
Napoli (4-3-3): Alex Meret; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Kim Min-jae, Amir Rrahmani, Mathias Olivera; Stanislav Lobotka, Tanguy Ndomble, Piotr Zielinski; Giacomo Raspadori, Victor Osimhen, Elif Elmas.
Sassuolo vs Napoli Prediction
Despite Sassuolo’s min-revival, we expect Napoli to walk away with three points and strengther their confidence ahead of the upcoming European duties.
Prediction: Napoli Win
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