Napoli is set to visit Lecce in a Serie A match on Saturday, April 8th, 2023, at Stadio Ettore Giardiniero – Via del Mare, Italy. As of now, Napoli holds the top spot in the Serie A standings and will look to continue their dominance against Lecce, who is currently in 16th place and only two points ahead of relegation. Here is a preview of the match, including head to head stats and a predicted lineup.
Head to Head:
Lecce and Napoli have met 11 times in domestic Italian competitions, with Partenopei dominating with six wins compared to two wins from Salentini, and the remaining games ending in a draw. Here are the head to head stats between the two clubs:
– September 1st, 2022: Napoli 1-1 Lecce (Serie A)
– February 9th, 2020: Napoli 2-3 Lecce (Serie A)
– September 22nd, 2019: Lecce 1-4 Napoli (Serie A)
– April 25th, 2012: Lecce 0-2 Napoli (Serie A)
– December 4th, 2011: Napoli 4-2 Lecce (Serie A)
Preview:
Lecce achieved a decent result in the first round by holding Napoli to a draw and has since maintained their position in the middle of the Serie A standings. However, the team’s recent performance is worrying, as they have lost all their last five matches since February and are only two points away from the relegation zone. The main issue for Marco Baroni’s team is their lack of productivity, having failed to score in their last 500 minutes of play.
Napoli’s performance before the international break was convincing, as they beat Torino and Atalanta in Serie A, as well as Frankfurt in the Champions League. However, losing Victor Osimhen had a significant impact on their performance, as they suffered a crushing 4-0 defeat to AC Milan last weekend. Despite this setback, Partenopei still hold a 15-point lead over Lazio in second place on the Serie A standings with ten games remaining.
Predicted Lineup:
Lecce will be without Marin Pongracic and Kastriot Dermaku on the defensive line due to injury, while Alexis Blin is suspended. Napoli, on the other hand, will be without their top scorer, Victor Osimhen, due to injury, and Giovanni Simeone is expected to replace him in their attacking lineup. Here are the predicted lineups for both teams:
Lecce (4-3-3) Falcone; Gendrey, Baschirotto, Umtiti, Gallo; Gonzalez, Hjulmand, Maleh; Strefezza, Ceesay, Di Francesco
Napoli (4-3-3) Meret; Di Lorenzo, Kim, Rrahmani, Rui; Anguissa, Lobotka, Elmas; Lozano, Simeone, Kvaratskhelia
Prediction:
Napoli will look to bounce back from their recent loss against Lecce, who has been struggling to find form lately. Furthermore, Lecce has not won at home since January 2023. Therefore, the prediction is that Napoli will win 2-0 against Lecce.
