Lazio take on the visitors Napoli in the round 18 match of Italian Serie A. The match will be played on Sunday, January 4th at Stadio Olimpico (Rome).
Lazio are not lacking ambition, and under Sarri they once finished as runners-up, which was their best result of this century. By contrast, in the 2024/2025 season, after losing sixth place to Fiorentina on tiebreakers, the club is not playing in European competitions at all, not even in the Conference League. It seemed that with Maurizio returning to the capital, Lazio would benefit from a lighter schedule. However, not everything has worked out smoothly, although the results are far from disastrous. They even managed to eliminate Milan in the cup. In Serie A, though, there has been near balance, with narrow wins only slightly more frequent than draws and defeats. They ended the previous calendar year with a draw away to Udinese, finishing 1-1. Recent performances suggest a team that is competitive but still inconsistent. Lazio often stay close in matches but struggle to fully turn control into a clear advantage.
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Napoli risk having an unsuccessful season, although much can still be corrected. After the failure of the 2023/2024 campaign, the Partenopei brought in Conte last summer. Antonio did not just deliver improvement, but eventually won the title race against Inter. This season, however, problems have been evident, and it is no surprise that the coach has reportedly considered leaving more than once. There has been an unconvincing return to the Champions League, where roughly half of the matches have been lost. Even in the cup, Napoli needed ten penalties to get past Cagliari. In Serie A, slip-ups have been just as frequent as among their rivals. They had no trouble beating Cremonese in the previous round. Before that, they defeated Milan 2-0 in the Super Cup, and then repeated the same scoreline against Bologna to lift another trophy. These recent wins have clearly boosted momentum. Napoli now look more confident and stable, especially in results-driven matches.
The Neapolitans have failed to win any of the last six head-to-head clashes, with four defeats to Lazio and two draws. The visitors look more stable overall, so the expectation is that they can secure yet another consecutive victory.
Prediction for the match: Napoli to win.
