Sparks will fly in Verona vs Napoli Serie A battle at the Marc Antonio Bentegodi on Saturday afternoon. Kick-off is scheduled at 14:00 BST, 21 October 2023.
Frosinone handed Verona their fourth loss of the season as Reinier and Matias Soule scored either side of the half before Milan Djuric scored a consolation goal for Marco Baroni's side who are still without a win in their last six Serie A games.
On the other hand, having headed into the international break with back-to-back losses to Real Madrid in the UCL and Fiorentina, Napoli will try to steady the ship on Saturday, when they visit an ailing Hellas Verona side who have lost both their last two matches at home to the Napolitans.
Verona vs Napoli team news
Hellas Verona will be glad as they're no longer affected by many injury troubles with a chance that Pawel Dawidowicz and Isak Hien could return to the lineup having been sidelined. Josh Doig is a doubt at the moment.
Ecco i 2️⃣6️⃣ convocati di mister #Baroni per #VeronaNapoli 🟡🔵#DaiVerona #SerieATIM pic.twitter.com/1vGnNyUyS5
— Hellas Verona FC (@HellasVeronaFC) October 20, 2023
Marco Baroni has experimented with different players upfront which has not really worked, he could think of bringing in Federico Bonazzoli or Milan Djuric into the starting lineup to try and solve the team's offensive problems as only Belgian forward Cyril Ngonge has scored more than once for the Gialloblu in Serie A this season.
On the side of Napoli, Rudi Garcia has an uphill task to get his players going after what has been a string of performances that has been a shadow of what they were last season. Controversies surrounding Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s loss of form have also been major factors that have dented Napoli’s course to defend the Scudetto.
Osimhen picked up a hamstring injury while on international duty and now faces six weeks out on the sidelines. His absence will be a major blow for the visitors given that his qualities will be difficult to fill in by the other strikers in the team.
Midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa is recovering from a thigh injury and will not play, while Juan Jesus is also out of contention. However, Amir Rrahmani is back in training and could return to the starting XI.
Alex Meret should start in goal behind the back four of Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Amir Rrahmani, Natan and Mario Rui. Stanislav Lobotka should start as the number six in midfield with Jens Cajuste and Piotr Zielinski acting as ball carriers.
In Osimhen’s absence, Giovanni Simeone should get the nod upfront to lead the line for Napoli against Hellas Verona. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia will reprise his role on the left flank with Matteo Politano on the other wing.
Verona vs Napoli probable lineups
Verona
Lorenzo Montipo (GK); Pawel Dawidowicz, Isak Hien, Giangiacomo Magnani; Davide Faraoni, Ondrej Duda, Michael Folorunsho, Darko Lazovic; Tomas Suslov, Cyril Ngonge, Milan Djuric.
Napoli
Alex Meret (GK); Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Amir Rrahmani, Natan and Mario Rui; Cajuste, Stanislav Lobotka, Piotr Zielinski; Matteo Politano, Giovanni Simeone, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Verona vs Napoli confirmed lineups
Verona
Napoli
*Lineups will be automatically updated shortly after they're released
Verona vs Napoli predictions
Napoli are the favourites ahead of kick-off but they are clearly out of form and will also be without their talismanic forward. Verona will have several players back from injury and will fancy their chances against Rudi Garcia's men. While we anticipate a hard-fought game with both sides gunning for all three points, here are three predictions for the Serie A encounter.
Prediction 1: Hellas Verona win or draw
Granted, Hellas Verona have won just once in their last 12 Serie A games against Napoli, they have however held the defending champions to a stalemate on several occasions. Napoli have won only two of their last seven away fixtures in Serie A and with Rudi Garcia’s side blowing hot and cold alternatively, Marco Baroni and his side will be keen to take advantage and come out with a decent result especially with the fact that Victor Osimhen is out injured and it's a home game.
Prediction 2: Both teams to score
This fixture has a knack of giving us goals at both ends; five of the last six meetings have ended on this note. While only three of Verona's eight Serie A games have seen both teams score, five out of eight Napoli games have also witnessed goals at both ends. Considering Verona and Napoli both look to get back to winning ways, we fancy them to score each other.
Prediction 3: Over 2.5 goals
Napoli come into this game on the back of seven high-scoring encounters in their last eight fixtures while Verona scored for the first time in four games in the 2-1 loss to Frosinone last time out. Ten goals were scored in two of the last three matches between them, and we expect another high-scoring affair as both sides lock horns at the Bentegodi.
Verona vs Napoli head-to-head history
In the 19 last matches between these sides, Napoli won 13, Verona won 3 while 3 matches were drawn.
Where to watch Verona vs Napoli live in Nigeria
Fans in Nigeria will be able to watch the live broadcast of Verona vs Napoli live on SuperSport Select 1.
This article was most recently revised and updated 1 year ago
