Lecce will face Napoli in the 29th round of Serie A on Saturday, April 8, 2023, at Stadio Comunale Via del Mare, at 00:00 (UTC+7). Lecce is currently in 16th position in the Serie A table with 27 points from 28 games. They are one of the bottom teams and are in a competition to get out of the relegation zone. Teams below Lecce, such as Spezia, Verona, Sampdoria, and Cremonese, have fewer points accumulated. However, if Lecce fails to secure a win soon, it is possible for the teams below them to overtake them.
Lecce will face a tough opponent, Napoli, who is the current leader of Serie A. Lecce has not been able to secure a single victory in the previous five games. Two days ago, Lecce faced Empoli at Stadio Carlo Castellani, but the home team won 1-0 through Caputo’s penalty goal in the 62nd minute. Empoli also lost Tonelli in the 90th minute after receiving a red card from the referee.
Before losing to Empoli, Lecce also closed the game before the international break with a defeat against Fiorentina with the same score. The only goal that made them lose was a own goal scored by Gallo in the 27th minute. However, Napoli also suffered the same result in the previous game. Playing in front of their supporters who attended Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Napoli was defeated by their visitors, AC Milan.
Napoli conceded two goals from AC Milan in the first half through Rafael Leao and Brahim Diaz. In the second half, Napoli had difficulty in creating a comeback goal and even conceded another goal from Saelemaekers. The defeat to AC Milan was Napoli’s third loss this season, but they still lead the standings with 23 wins. Losing to AC Milan does not threaten Napoli’s position in the Serie A table. They are still far ahead of Lazio in second place with 55 points.
Lecce has been struggling in the previous games, failing to secure a single point in their last five Serie A games. They have conceded total of six goals and failed to score even one. On the other hand, Napoli has won three games and lost two in their last five games.
Lecce and Napoli have only met three times since 2019. Both teams have won one game each, and one game ended in a draw. In the first round of Serie A this season, Lecce and Napoli shared the points with a 1-1 draw in their match in September last year.
Here is the predicted line-up for both teams:
Lecce: Falcone; Gendrey, Baschirotto, Umtiti, Gallo; Gonzalez, Hjulmand, Maleh; Strefezza, Ceesay, Di Francesco. Coach: Marco Baroni.
Napoli: Meret; Di Lorenzo, Kim, Rrahmani, Rui; Anguissa, Lobotka, Elmas; Lozano, Simeone, Kvaratskhelia. Coach: Luciano Spalletti.
Prediction: Lecce 0-2 Napoli. A crucial match for Lecce’s survival in Serie A, but Napoli is expected to have the upper hand due to their superior form and position in the table.
