SSC Napoli welcome leaders Inter looking to regain top spot as AS Roma, fresh from another UEFA Champions League humiliation, and ACF Fiorentina seek to keep pace with the Serie A title favorites.
Sitting just two points off the pace alongside third-placed Fiorentina, Napoli’s title belief has been strengthened by a string of impressive performances at home and in Europe. The Azzurri are unbeaten since losing their league opener away to US Sassuolo and, with striker Gonzalo Higuain leading the league on 10 goals, Maurizio Sarri’s men have stormed into the UEFA Europa League round-of-32.
It is all a far cry from September last year, when a single victory in their opening five league games left Napoli icon Diego Maradona, the architect of their previous two titles, in 1986-1987 and 1989-1990, publicly lambasting Sarri. Tracksuit-wearing Sarri, a lifelong Napoli fan, took the blow on the chin and since then Napoli have dropped only two points as they chase a third title.
Between them, Higuain and Lorenzo Insigne have scored 17 of Napoli’s 24 goals, but, with only eight conceded, Inter have the meanest defense in Serie A.
While an Inter win would open up a five-point gap on Napoli, Fiorentina and Roma are expected to remain in hot pursuit, while Juventus, nine points off the pace, travel to US Citta di Palermo in the hunt for a fourth consecutive win days after beating Manchester City 1-0 to secure their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 ticket.
Atalanta BC have only won once away from home this season, but must fancy a tilt amid the crisis that has engulfed Roma following their 6-1 humiliation at the hands of Barcelona on Tuesday.
Roma’s Camp Nou calamity means they must beat BATE Borisov in their final Champions League Group E game to have any chance of qualifying for the round-of-16.
Coach Rudi Garcia, who is still without forwards Gervinho and Mohamed Salah, even took flak from his own players, including Alessandro Florenzi and Maicon — who both played when Roma were humiliated 7-1 at home by Bayern Munich last year.
“We did nothing but defend for 90 minutes against a side that had the complete run of the game,” Maicon said.
While Napoli have Higuain, Fiorentina have their own goal machine in the shape of Nikola Kalinic, whose nine-goal haul so far has alerted Chelsea’s scouts, according to reports in Italy.
Having scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 demolition of Inter, Kalinic came off the bench to rescue La Viola with a brace in a 2-2 draw at home to Empoli last weekend.
Fiorentina coach Paulo Sousa last week admitted his “mistake” of leaving Kalinic on the bench and indicated he is unlikely to do the same when they visit a formidable Sassuolo, who are unbeaten at home.
Elsewhere, AC Milan host UC Sampdoria today in a match that could see the spotlight fall on both coaches.
Milan boss Sinisa Mihajlovic spent two years with Samp before taking the reins of the Rossoneri, while Sampdoria’s new coach Vincenzo Montella saw his side suffer a 1-0 defeat to Udinese in his first game in charge last weekend, but president Massimo Ferrero is convinced he has the right man.
“I wish Sinisa all the best, but coaches are like wives. He chose another husband and abandoned me, but I’m lucky because now I have Montella, the best in the world,” Ferrero said.
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