Napoli vs Atalanta
Stadio Diego Armando Maradona sets the stage for a mouth-watering Serie A encounter between Napoli and Atalanta.
Napoli solidified their pursuit of a second Scudetto in three years with a superb 2-0 win against AC Milan in midweek Serie A action, extending their winning streak in all competitions to six matches. That’s only two short of their formidable eight-game winning run at the tail-end of 2022/24 when they won the title, testifying to Antonio Conte’s sterling job in Naples. Conte has rebuilt Napoli’s home fortress, with ‘I Partenopei’ winning all five league matches at the Maradona this season via an aggregate score of 11-2. However, there’s no room for complacency ahead of Atalanta’s visit, with the last four top-flight H2Hs on this ground alternating between victories for each side (W2, L2).
Atalanta thumped Napoli 3-0 in this corresponding fixture last term and could make it back-to-back top-flight away wins against this opposition for the first time since 1997. Gian Piero Gasperini’s men will take the field amid an impressive four-game winning streak in Serie A, during which they bagged an eye-catching 15 goals. However, the visitors have stuttered on their league travels this season, picking up just one win from four (D1, L2). That’s a potentially worrying sign for ‘La Dea,’ and problems would likely pile up if they concede first, considering Napoli’s 100% win ratio when breaking the deadlock this season (W8).