Torino v Napoli – Preview: Partenopei continue fight for second place

Date: 27th February 2015 at 9:37am
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Hamsik + Zapata - NapoliNapoli will be looking to grab second place as they prepare to face an in-form Torino at the Stadio Olimpico in Turin on Sunday evening.

The Granata will be a tough side for the Azzurri to overcome in Turin as the hosts have lost just two of their Serie A matches at home this season, with their last league defeat at home coming against Sassuolo in November.

Besides their solid home record throughout the campaign, Giampiero Ventura’s men have also managed to remain undefeated in their last 11 Serie A matches, with their previous league result coming as a 1-1 draw against an impressive Fiorentina side, and currently sit in 10th place with 33 points.

The Partenopei had been on a hot streak in Italy’s top tier up until their recent four-game winning streak, plus a three-game away victory stretch, was snapped by Palermo, though the Azzurri have since returned to winning ways with a 2-0 result over Sassuolo on February 23.

Rafa Benitez’s squad have been able to keep pressure on second place Roma as of late and now sit just three points behind the struggling Giallorossi with 45 points, giving them a chance to snatch second if the Lupi fail to achieve victory in their meeting with Juventus.

The two teams will certainly enter their clash with high morale due to their impressive Europa League wins on Thursday which will see them both enter the round of 16, with Torino securing a 3-2 win over Athletic Club in Spain, becoming the first Italian club to win at the San Mames, and Napoli earning a 1-0 win over Trabzonspor, adding up to a dominant 5-0 triumph on aggregate.

The head to head history between the two sides shows that Torino have had quite some trouble earning three points against Napoli in recent years, as the San Paolo outfit have won the past four meetings including the first clash between the teams earlier this season. Il Toro’s last victory against the Azzurri came in a 2-1 result during the 2008-09 campaign.

Ventura will have nearly his full team available with the exception of Alvaro Gonzalez, who is out with an injury and is expected to continue his recovery until match week 29, and the suspended Giuseppe Vives.

Napoli boss Benitez is still waiting on Michu, Lorenzo Insigne and Juan Zuniga to return to match fitness, with all three still nursing their long-term injuries, while Dries Mertens will be out serving a one-match ban for the red card he received against Sassuolo.

Faouzi Ghoulam, David Lopez, Raul Albiol and Gokhan Inler will have to face the Granata with caution as all remain one yellow card away from picking up suspensions of their own.

Form Guide: Torino (D-D-W-W-W-W) Napoli (W-L-W-W-W-W)

Expected Starting XIs

Torino: Padelli; Moretti, Glik, Maksimovic; Darmian, Farnerud, Gazzi, Benassi, B. Peres; Quagliarella, Maxi Lopez.

Napoli: Andujar; Maggio, Koulibaly, Albiol, Strinic; Gargano, D. Lopez; Callejon, Hamsik, De Guzman; Higuain.

 

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