Napoli-Lazio is a match from the third day of Serie A and is played Saturday at 8:45 p.m.: lineups, predictions, TV and streaming.
Never look at the standings after the first few days: one of the unwritten rules that affects Serie A as much as other leagues. Yet it is strange to see Napoli and Lazio, first and second respectively in the last season, already separated by six points after the first two rounds, with Maurizio Sarri’s team, the great former of the match, still out of the water.
And instead the Azzurri and Biancocelesti are experiencing a diametrically opposite situation. Napoli has picked up where it left off. It matters little that there is no longer Luciano Spalletti on the bench, but Rudi Garcia. The French coach, who has returned to coaching in Italy after his experience at Roma – for him he will be pulling a bit of derby air – has shown (at least for now) that he can pick up the baton of the current national team’s technical commissioner. His is a more vertical Napoli, less tied to possession, but the protagonists of the Scudetto ride are still there. In the last days of the market, in place of Gabri Veiga – in the end the Spanish talent formerly of Celta Vigo preferred the Saudi petrodollars – came a very interesting player like the Dane Lindstrom, whose characteristics seem to match perfectly with the novelties Garcia would like to introduce. Napoli, which so far has conceded only one goal, at Frosinone, but on the other hand has scored five (3 to the Ciociari and 2 to Sassuolo).
On the other hand, Lazio has to be reviewed, which after the mocking comeback suffered in Lecce – from 0-1 to 2-1 – failed to react, losing (0-1) even against the newly promoted Genoa, which passed at the Olimpico thanks to a goal by the oriundo Retegui. Thus, a delicate moment for Sarri and his men, who last year were among the few to conquer the “Maradona” and inflict a defeat – however painless for the Azzurri – on the tournament’s dominator.
Napoli-Lazio: the latest news on the lineups
In Napoli, Kvaratskhelia will finally start from the 1′, after entering the game in progress with Sassuolo. Garcia in any case has everyone available except goalkeeper Gollini, who hurt his hand. The Azzurri will take the field with the typical formation: up front with Osimhen and “Kvara” will play Politano. Newcomer Lindstrom will also be on the bench.
Little news for Sarri as well: the Tuscan coach should confirm the eleven that faced Genoa last Sunday. The only doubt concerns the midfield, where the Japanese Kamada is in the ballot with Vecino. Pedro is in strong doubt due to an ankle problem.
The prediction
Napoli is off to a strong start, Lazio is not. However, this does not mean that we will not witness an exciting match, on the contrary. There are all the ingredients, in fact, for a prolific challenge, unlike what happened a year ago, when the Biancoceleste defense managed to defuse the Neapolitan attack. Sarri’s team in the first two games, on the other hand, appeared vulnerable in the non-possession phase and it is quite unlikely that they will keep their goal inviolate precisely against Osimhen and co. Napoli slightly favored.
The probable formations of Napoli-Lazio
- NAPOLI (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Juan Jesus, Olivera; Zambo Anguissa, Lobotka, Zielinski; Politano, Osimhen, Kvaratskhelia.
- LAZIO (4-3-3): Provedel; Lazzari, Casale, Romagnoli, Marusic; Kamada, Cataldi, Luis Alberto; Felipe Anderson, Immobile, Zaccagni.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 2-1