Napoli will be keen on getting their campaign back on track when they take on Salernitana at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium on Saturday.
Walter Mazzarri has a big task to make Napoli relevant again as they get set to take on Salernitana. The Serie A champions are nowhere near their form from last season, as they languish in ninth place on the table. Their start to the new year has been similar to how they ended the previous one, and fans will be hoping for a major turnaround in fortunes.
Mazzarri did start his reign after replacing Rudi Garcia in a good way. But results have gone against the Italian manager over the last few weeks. Napoli have lost four of their last six games, with questions already raised as to whether the managerial change has had any sort of meaningful impact.
Their last victory in the league came in mid-November against Atalanta. And as things stand, they are an incredible 20 points behind leaders Inter Milan. Hence, a title triumph is out of the question. But there are things they can achieve yet, including a fight to stay relevant in European places.
Bottom-placed Salernitana are coming to take on Napoli hoping to inflict more damage on the Serie A champions. However, their recent record has been equally dismal as they languish at the foot of the table,
Filippo Inzaghi’s men have lost two games against Juventus in a few days, including a big loss in the Coppa Italia. After that, when facing the Bianconeri, Salernitana did show a lot of character compared to their 6-1 loss a few days ago. And it took a stoppage-time winner from Dusan Vlahovic to help Juventus collect the three points.
The gap between the bottom five teams is not monumentally large, meaning Salernitana will have to find a way to churn out results. More bad results in the coming games could mean trouble for Inzaghi and his men in the context of surviving the relegation ordeal later in the season.
Team News & Tactics
Napoli
The upcoming game would have been a big moment for Pasquale Mazzocchi to face his former side, Salernitana. But the Italian defender was sent off four minutes into his debut for Napoli against Torino and will now miss this clash.
There are further absentees: Alex Meret, Natan Souza and Mathias Olivera. To add to Mazzarri’s woes, Napoli will miss key duo Victor Osimhen and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, who have already left for the AFCON to represent Nigeria and Cameroon, respectively.
Hence, Mazzarri might have to rethink his team selections. But he will have most of his core players to take the pitch against Salernitana. Juan Jesus and Amir Rrahmani are the key central defenders in this setup, with Giovanni Di Lorenzo and Mario Rui the ideal full-back choices.
Jens Cajuste could replace Anguissa in central midfield to partner with Stanislav Lobotka and Piotr Zielinski. In Osimhen’s place, Napoli could line up with Giacomo Raspadori, who will have Matteo Politano and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia on either side.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Gollini; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Jesus, Rui; Cajuste, Lobotka, Zielinski; Politano, Raspadori, Kvaratskhelia
Salernitana
Filippo Inzaghi also has a few problems in his squad, with Lorenzo Pirola and Grigoris Kastanos out of the contest against Napoli. Giulio Maggiore will also miss out after a second yellow against Juventus, which was considered very soft by all means.
Attacker Boulaye Dia will miss a few weeks with a hamstring problem, with the same issue keeping him out of Senegal’s AFCON campaign. Lassana Coulibaly and Jovane Cabral have travelled to the AFCON and will miss the duration their teams stay in the continental tournament.
As for his selections, Inzaghi will deploy his typical 4-3-2-1 style, with Nigerian striker Simy at the tip of his attack. Loum Tchaouna and Antonio Candreva will support him in the attacking play, with support from three midfielders in Mateusz Legowski, Emil Bohinen and Agustin Martegani.
Further behind, Federico Fazio and Norbert Gyomber are pencilled in for the central defensive roles. Flavius Daniliuc and Domagoj Bradaric are the best available players to Inzaghi for the full-back roles.
Probable Lineup (4-3-2-1): Costil; Daniliuc, Fazio, Gyomber, Bradaric; , Legowski, Bohinen, Martegani; Tchaouna, Candreva; Simy
Key Stats
- Napoli have lost four of their last six games.
- Napoli have won six of their last seven matches against Salernitana in all competitions.
- Napoli have failed to score in five of their last six matches in Serie A.
- Napoli are 20 points behind Serie A leaders Inter Milan.
- Salernitana have failed to win 18 of their last 20 matches Serie A.
Player to Watch
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
The Georgian international has come into the news because of his agent’s comments on Victor Osimhen and his Napoli future. On the pitch, Kvaratskhelia has not performed to his best levels, and coincidentally, Napoli have lacked in their overall displays.
Many have argued that last season was a mere flash in the pan for the Georgian. But he still has time to prove his doubters wrong. Napoli need inspiration from somewhere, and with Osimhen also absent due to his AFCON commitments, the onus will fall on Kvaratskhelia to perform for this team and help them rise.
Prediction
Napoli 1-1 Salernitana
In terms of quality, Napoli certainly can edge Salernitana and condemn the bottom-placed side for another bad result. Filippo Inzaghi will surely hope to find a result against the struggling Serie A champions. But Walter Mazzarri will equally want his side to kick-start a period of success.
Hence, these sides are desperate for a positive result, and with the problems on both sides, this game has all the hallmarks of a draw. Napoli do have the players to change the game around, but going by their current mood, it is unlikely to happen even against the bottom-placed side in Serie A.
