Napoli vs Empoli Preview: Probable Lineups, Prediction, Tactics, Team News & Key Stats

Rampant Napoli will be looking to extend their lead at the top of Serie A when they welcome Empoli to Stadio Diego Maradona on Tuesday night.

Napoli have been on fire throughout the season, playing with the same upbeat mindset, powerful and fluid attacking style in both Serie A and the Champions League. They score goals in almost every game and are by a distance the most effective team in Italy.

There is just no stopping Napoli at the moment. They have secured their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League by topping their group in dominant fashion. The absence of Georgian playmaker Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, though, appeared to cause some attacking issues for Gli Azzurri in Bergamo, and it is uncertain when the talented winger will rejoin to the squad.

Still, even without the Georgian, Napoli took care of the business, with Elif Elmas stepping up with what proved to be the winner at Atalanta. Their attacking depth has driven them to the top of Serie A, establishing a six-point lead at the summit, and they look set to resume their free-scoring run this midweek in order to continue their sensational start to the season. 

They’re up against Paolo Zanetti’s Empoli side, who currently sit in the 14th position with 14 points, a satisfactory eight points above the drop zone. They come into this game on the back of a morale-boosting 1-0 victory against Sassuolo in the league. An expertly-taken finish from 19-year-old attacking midfielder Tommaso Baldanzi proved all the difference between both sides on the day.

Though Empoli shocked Napoli by doing the league double last campaign, but they have only won once in six league games on the road this season, while this current edition of the Partenopei is a completely different animal.  The Hard Tackle looks at how both sides could line up on the night and what tactics they might employ.

Team News & Tactics

Napoli

Luciano Spalletti could be without star attacker Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Even if fit to start, the Napoli boss is unlikely to take any risks with such a major player for their title and European hopes. Otherwise, there are no other fresh injury concerns, with Amir Rrahmani back for the Gli Azzurri.

With extensive coaching experience in Italy, the former Inter and Roma coach is masterfully guiding the Napoli team to success, keeping their feet on the ground. Many Naples faithful may even argue this is the best-ever iteration of the Partenopei in their whole history. And to clarify, there has been some competition in the past.

Spalletti has preferred to use a 4-3-3 formation this season and will stick to the same here, albeit his style is more about exploiting spaces and changing roles than rigid positioning. That’s one of the reasons why the Partenopei have been free-scoring and have spread the goals all across the pitch this season, with 13 players finding the net in Serie A action, and can breach their visitors’ defence thanks to their formidable firepower.

Serie A top-scorer Victor Osimhen is tearing apart opposing defences for fun. The Nigerian striker will lead the charge for the hosts on the top end of the pitch and will have to carry most of the goal-scoring workload for his team, as well as creating space for wide-men in Elif Elmas and Matteo Politano, who will take up the wide positions, playing on the left and right-wing, respectively.

Hirving Lozano, who started against Atalanta last time out, will have to remain content with a bench role, as will summer signings Giacomo Raspadori and Giovanni Simeone.

In scintillating form, Alex Meret is the sure starter in goal for the hosts, behind the back four of Mathías Olivera, Kim Min-Jae, Leo Ostigard, and captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo. The midfield trio of Tanguy Ndombele, Stanislav Lobotka, and Andre Zambo-Frank Anguissa will aim to seize control in the middle of the park, as well as marauding forward to cause the opposition problems with darting runs.

Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Ostigard, Kim Min Jae, Olivera; Anguissa, Lobotka, Ndombele; Politano, Osimhen, Elmas

Empoli

Empoli are again expected to be without the services of Alberto Grassi, Lorenzo Tonelli, and Koni De Winter, while experienced forward Mattias Destro has also joined Empoli’s recovery room.

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Following a hard-fought weekend triumph over the weekend, Head Coach Zanetti is set to retain most of the starting XI as the visitors look for a stunning third straight victory against the Serie A leaders.

The visitors will line up with their usual 4-3-1-2 formation with Guglielmo Vicario in goal. The 26-year-old shot-stopper is coming off the back of a clean sheet but will have his hands full here.

Ardian Ismajli will form the centre-half partnership with Sebastiano Luperto at the heart of Empoli’s backline. Tyronne Ebuehi will fill in as the right-back, while Fabiano Parisi slots in on the other side as the left-back. Both of the fullbacks are expected to stay narrow to try to contain Napoli’s buzzing forward.

Filippo Bandinelli could be key to Empoli’s chance-creation, topping the club’s charts for key passes and crosses per game. Razvan Marin and Nedim Bajrami are expected to accompany Bandinelli in the middle of the park.

Empoli’s troubles this season have been primarily due to a lack of goals. They have only scored 10 goals this season, which is the second-lowest goal tally in the division. Indeed, they might struggle to score against the Serie A leaders’ formidable backline.

Academy product Baldanzi has been one of the very few shining lights this season and is the club’s joint-top scorer with two goals. The absence of Destro means Sam Lammers is the favourite to partner Martin Satriano up top. They will look to give Empoli some much-needed oomph in the final third.

Probable Lineup (4-3-1-2): Vicario; Ebuehi, Ismajli, Luperto, Parisi; Bajrami, Marin, Bandinelli; Baldanzi; Lammers, Satriano

Key Stats

• Fresh off another excellent victory at Atalanta, Napoli will be hoping to make it a terrific ten Serie A wins in a row.
• Napoli have won their last nine Serie A matches, scoring 22 goals in the process.
• Napoli have scored three or more goals in seven of their last 10 matches, and have scored at least three goals in each of their last three home Serie A matches.
• In 15 head-to-head encounters between the two sides, the results have been split right down the middle in the history. Napoli have won six games, lost six, and drawn three.
• The Neapolitans are the only unbeaten team in Serie A (P13, W11, D2).

Player to Watch

Victor Osimhen

The 23-year-old Nigerian striker has drawn interest from all around Europe, but this might be his final season in Italy, but he is really making it count and is playing an important role in helping them steer clear in the title race.

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He scored his league-leading eighth goal of the ongoing Serie A campaign for Napoli over the weekend, and he just looks like a beast with defenders bouncing off him. The striking powerhouse is strong, technically adept, and an intelligent finisher, while his energy, physicality, athleticism, heading ability, and lung-busting runs can cause the opposition plenty of problems.

He’s just a complete package. With his stock continuing to rise, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Napoli received proposals in excess of £120 million down the line next summer.

Prediction

Napoli 2-0 Empoli

Napoli will be especially motivated to avenge their two defeats to Empoli in the last Serie A season that derailed their Scudetto bid. One of the best teams in the whole of Europe, Luciano Spalletti has created a dynamite that fears no opponents, and the players are driven to bring real success to Stadio Armando Maradona.

Undoubtedly, Napoli are justifiably strong favourites in this one as they will be looking to keep the juggernaut rolling with another three points here. The gulf in attacking quality between these rivals is enormous, and it would be foolish to suggest anything other than a convincing Napoli victory on Tuesday night.