Napoli will be looking to return to winning ways as they prepare to host Parma at the San Paolo on Thursday in their final Serie A match before the start of the new year.
The Partenopei have failed to secure a win in their past four league matches, with their most recent result coming in a 2-0 loss to AC Milan after a lacking performance at the San Siro on Sunday, and have now lost their spot in the top three as they currently sit in seventh place in the Serie A standings with 24 points.
Despite their lack of points as of late, the Neapolitan side had gone undefeated in their past 11 league matches until falling to the Rossoneri, with Pippo Inzaghi’s men handing the visitors only their third loss of the campaign.
The Crociati have been unable to break their shockingly horrible form after gaining just one point in a goalless draw at home against Zdenek Zeman’s inconsistent Cagliari side on Sunday and still sit dead last on the league table with six points, having recently lost a point due to an unpaid taxes violation. One of the Gialloblu’s two victories this term thus far came away from home in their 3-2 result against Chievo on September 21, with all other away games ending in a defeat.
Parma have the advantage when it comes to managing a positive result against Napoli in the recent past as Roberto Donadoni’s men were able to win both of their previous meetings with the San Paolo outfit during the 2013-14 season with a 1-0 outcome each time, though the Neapolitans had won five of the six games between the two sides prior to their pair of losses last term.
Rafa Benitez will have most of his squad available to him for the battle in Naples, though key defender Raul Albiol will be absent due to a suspension. Kalidou Koulibaly will have to be on his best behaviour against the Gialloblu as he is one yellow card away from receiving a one-match ban.
Juan Zuniga, Lorenzo Insigne and Michu are all currently nursing their respective injuries and will be out of the Azzurri line up until 2015.
The Ducali will have to face Napoli without Massimo Coda, who will be out until April, though Mattia Cassani is expected to make his return. Jonathan Biabiany, Cristobal Jorquera and Abdelkader Ghezzal will be undergoing medial evaluations in the coming days to determine if they’re match fit, while Francesco Lodi and Daniele Galloppa remain on the verge of suspension due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Expected Starting XIs
Napoli: Rafael; Ghoulam, Koulibaly, Britos, Maggio; Jorginho, David Lopez; Mertens, Hamsik, Callejon; Higuain
Parma: Mirante; Costa, Lucarelli, Santacroce; Gobbi, Acquah, Lodi, J. Mauri, Rispoli; Palladino, Cassano
