Napoli host Torino at the Stadio San Paolo in Serie A on Wednesday night, as the hosts look to get 2016 off to a winning start following the winter break, in what they hope will be the year they finally claim their first Scudetto since 1990.
After a bit of a shaky start under new boss Maurizio Sarri the Partenopei finally got their act together after their early season jitters, with the San Paolo faithful witnessing some fantastic football and plenty of goals since, whilst looking a lot tighter in defence than in previous seasons.
The southern giants currently sit joint second in the standing with Fiorentina on 35 points after gameweek 17, just one behind leaders Inter at the summit. Sarri’s men boast an impressive home record this campaign with six wins and two draws in their eight fixtures to date, with 16 goals scored and only five conceded, but they did draw 0-0 with Roma in their last home game before Christmas.
The Granata, meanwhile, have been a model of inconsistency this season, showing only glimpses of their potential in defeating Fiorentina 3-1 in gameweek two, while a 1-0 loss to Udinese in Turin just before the winter break just about summed up their season to date.
The Turin side sit 12th in the table on 22 points after 16 games following the postponement of their fixture against Sassuolo just before the Christmas break. The Granata have won two of their seven games on their travels this campaign, beating Frosinone 2-1 away in their first match of the season and defeating Atalanta 1-0 in Bergamo in gameweek 13. Giampiero Ventura’s men have lost four and drawn one in their other away trips to date.
Last season’s fixtures between the sides saw the teams share a victory apiece. Napoli won 2-1 in Naples in October, while the Granata defeated Wednesday’s opponents 1-0 in March at the Stadio Olimpico, thanks to a second half Kamil Glik goal.
In the previous 10 fixtures at the San Paolo between the teams in Serie A, Napoli have won three, while Torino recorded just the one victory, a 2-1 win in May 2009 with the other six fixtures ending in draws.
The hosts head into the fixture with virtually a fully fit squad to choose from with only midfielder Jorginho missing out through suspension. Top scorer Gonzalo Higuain with his 16 goals is set to spearhead the Partenopei attack in their usual 4-3-3 formation.
Ventura’s side also have virtually a clean bill of health with only Joel Obi a doubt for the fixture with a hamstring injury. Torino forward and four-goal top scorer Fabio Quagliarella will be looking to add to his tally against his former side as the Granata line-up in a 3-5-2 formation.
Form Guide: Napoli (L-W-D-W-W) Torino (W-W-D-L-L)
Expected Starting XIs
Napoli: Reina; Hysaj, Albiol, Koulibaly, Ghoulam; Valdifiori, Hamsik, Allan; Callejon, Higuain, Insigne.
Torino: Padelli; Bovo, Glik, Moretti; Peres, Benassi, Vives, Baselli, Avelar; Belotti, Quagliarella
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com