Preview : Napoli - Juventus

Darko Kovacevic was on the scoresheet and Edwin Van Der Sar in goal when Juventus last went to Napoli in Serie A and won. It was a wet September 2000 night back then, a tie that the Old Lady triumphed in thanks to a trademark Alessandro Del Piero curler. In the four top-flight games at the San Paolo since, Napoli have won all four…

The Old Lady will arrive in Naples looking to maintain top spot in Serie A after impressive wins over Fiorentina and Inter. Walter Mazzarri’s men, meanwhile, have picked up just four points from the last 12 available and will have Wednesday’s Champions League clash against Bayern Munich in their legs.

Juve boss Antonio Conte looks set to stick with the lone striker formation which overpowered the Viola and frustrated the Nerazzurri. Alessandro Matri should keep his place in attack, with Mirko Vucinic and Simone Pepe occupying the flanks.

Emanuele Giaccherini remains a doubt as he recovers from a thigh strain, but Gigi Buffon and Arturo Vidal proved their fitness at San Siro. Milos Krasic is again set to miss out unless he makes a notable impression on Conte in training before the tie.

Juventus, the only unbeaten side left in the Division, have the second best away record in the League behind Lazio. They’ve collected eight points on the road, while the Azzurri have only collected seven at home this term.

Napoli are a clearly gifted side, but it remains to be seen which Napoli turn up on Sunday night. The team have clearly struggled to juggle their domestic and European commitments this season, as defeats against Chievo, Parma and Catania illustrate.

Nevertheless, motivation shouldn’t be lacking from a side who have already beaten Milan, high-flying Udinese and Inter this season.

Mazzarri will be without the suspended Mario Santana, while Miguel Britos, Walter Gargano and Marco Donadel are fitness doubts. With an international break coming up, don’t expect the former Sampdoria Coach to rest anyone. He’ll want one big final push.

Mazzarri has the upper hand in his personal battle with Conte. Walter’s Napoli team beat Conte’s Atalanta side 2-0 in January 2010. Fabio Quagliarella and Michele Pazienza, who now both find themselves at Juve, scored the goals.

Keep an eye on: Edinson Cavani (Napoli) – The 24-year-old Uruguayan is unsurprisingly his side’s top scorer in Serie A this term with four strikes in eight games. Juventus know all about his ability though after his stunning hat-trick last season saw his side come out on top in this one.

Last five in Serie A: Napoli (W L D W L) Juventus (W D D W W)

Last season: Napoli 3-0 Juventus

Stat fact: There have been 66 meetings at the San Paolo in Serie A. Napoli have 21 wins, Juventus 20 and 25 draws. The Azzurri have 79 goals against the Old Lady’s 75. The aggregate score of the last four Napoli-Juve games at the San Paolo in Serie A is Napoli 11 Juventus 3.

Napoli (probable): De Sanctis; Campagnaro, Cannavaro, Aronica; Maggio, Dzemaili, Inler, Dossena; Hamsik, Lavezzi; Cavani

Juventus (probable): Buffon; Lichtsteiner, Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini; Marchsio, Pirlo; Pepe, Vidal, Vucinic; Matri

Ref: To follow...

4-2-3-1?
I like a 4-3-3 better but its still alright

After seeing Napoli's CL game vs Bayern, I can say nothing else than a 4-3-3 should be launched against them. Bayern's free flowing attacking play so badly exposed Napoli's 3 man defense, which is rarely seen. They cant really deal with this type of football, the only thing which kept them pretty high on the table is the defensive nature of Serie A. Midweek, there were only two Napoli players on the pitch, Fernández and Lavezzi. The others were really invisible.
Also, Juve have to focus on Fernández, his headers are extremely precise. Keep Lavezzi in bay and we will be fine.

One more note, De Sanctis was so terrible against Bayern, never really seen him like this, but we can take the advantage of that.

Shut down Lavezzi and we shut fown most of Napolis attacking power. We should play a 4321-style 433, eith Vucinic and Pepe supporting Matri. Give Quags, Elia, and Krasic some time too though.

was Elia and Krasic called up?....

this is the biggest game of the season to far for Juventus for me
Napoli, away, is going to be a really tough match
would love a win here

BY FAR a bigger match than Inter, Milan, etc.

A top team in top form. The first REAL test for Juve. If they lose it means nothing really at this point(just a loss, normal for any team), but if they win it means so much.

Hopefully Napoli's pretty average run of form continues. And I hope the match in Munich messed up their confidence.

Being the team to conceed the fastest hat trick in the CL is not exactly morale boosting.

i think JUVENTUS will win this game with 2 goals a difference 100%