Napoli welcome the visitors Genoa in the Italian Serie A – Round 31. The match will be held on Sunday, April, 7th, at the Stadio San Paolo (Naples).
The hosting Napoli have long dreamed of winning the scudetto, but they don’t feature any chances for this so far. When guided by Maurizio Sarri, the side concentrated much on the domestic league and were very close to their goal but ended second. Carlo Ancelotti did not succeed to step up – yet after the first term it was clear that Napoli would not catch up with Juventus. The Naples outfit confidently sit second in the standings – their first fixtures proved that silver medals weren’t going anywhere from them. The side’s tally is 60 points attained in 28 rounds; the team run 7 points above the closest pursuers Internazionale. After Napoli found themselves in the Europa League being knocked out of the Champions League, they masterfully progressed to the quarterfinals. In 1/16 finals, they managed Zurich twice (3:1 and 2:0). Then they faced the more solid Salzburg. In Naples, they won by a scoreline of 3:0, while away, they conceded, 1:3. There wasn’t much intrigue in the reverse leg anyways. Now Ancelotti’s men will be tested by the far stronger opponents Arsenal blistering under Unai Emery. Napoli’s key players are generally in great form, only Raul Albiol and Alex Meret are unwell.
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Basically, the visiting Genoa do not look to complete any goals. The side are placed in the middle of the table, they are not relegation-threatened, neither they have chances for the European spots. The visitors are presently headed by the highly experienced Cesare Prandelli. Not every manager will agree to guide the team, as the club’s management easily rotate coaches should there be any issues. The coaches are not given time for adaptation, so, they need to show results from the outset. Objectively, Prandelli succeeded. Genoa’s performers do not provide for the Europa League. The side are not ambitious, which is proved by the fact that their top striker Krzysztof Piatek was sold midseason. The club made € 35 million euro of him and invited Lukas Lerager, Stefano Sturaro, Antonio Sanabria, and Ivan Radanovic. Looks like no one in Genoa suffered because of the Polish striker’s departure. The club profited from the sale and fortified the squad.
The opponents’ first-term meeting on Genoa’s side ended in Genoa’s 1:2 defeat. Prandelli’s men were ahead along the match, but Napoli managed to wear them down. That said, the Neapolitans did not score the winner themselves – Davide Biraschi netted an own goal on the 86th minute. Last Genoa’s win over Napoli was registered in 2012 – they attained a 3:2 victory in front of their fans. Afterwards, Napoli were victors 10 times, and 3 matches ended level. The Sunday encounter presents a clash of the expert coaches Ancelotti and Prandelli, which will certainly promote the game. One should bear in mind though that the specialists’ teams are totally different in terms of their players’ skills. This campaign, at the Stadio San Paolo, the hosts on the day were defeated only by Juventus. Genoa are weak on the road – they picked up just 2 wins in 13 outings, therefore, they don’t have any chances in their coming trip to Naples.
Prediction for the match: Napoli to win with a -1.5 handicap.
