Defending champions Napoli will be hoping to turn around their fortunes when Serie A resumes after another international break this weekend, kicking off with what appears to be a winnable tie against Atalanta at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium on Saturday evening (19:45 GMT).
Team form
After a solid start to their title defence, winning their opening four Serie A fixtures, Napoli’s form has fallen to the wayside somewhat.
Antonio Conte’s men have won just three of their last seven league outings, losing as many and drawing the other.
It’s on the road, though, they’ve particularly struggled, with that hat-trick of losses coming away to AC Milan, Torino and Bologna.
Despite their slump, Napoli are by no means out of the title race. They’re just two points behind league leaders Inter Milan, so all is not lost.
Atalanta, on the other hand, have struggled to really get going thus far. A tally of two wins, seven draws and two defeats from their first 11 games ultimately cost Ivan Juric his job earlier this month.
Back-to-back Serie A defeats against Udinese and Sassuolo were the final nail in the coffin for the former Southampton boss after a seven-game winless run, leaving the side in 13th.
This will be a challenging first game for the new Atalanta manager, Raffaele Palladino, but could we see a new manager bounce?
Head-to-head
The recent head-to-head form between these two sides narrowly favours Napoli, with three wins compared to Atalanta’s two over the last five games.
The visitors ended a four-game losing streak against the current Italian champions with back-to-back 3-0 wins over Napoli at this venue in 2024.
However, Gli Azzurri turned things around with a 3-2 win when the sides last met at Gewiss Stadium back in January.
It’s safe to say that there could be a fair share of goals, as just one of the last 10 meetings has seen fewer than three strikes.
Team news
Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, Frank Anguissa, Billy Gilmour and Alex Meret remain out of action for the hosts, leaving Conte with five major absentees.
While De Bruyne, Lukaku, Gilmour and Meret were all injured before the international break, Anguissa strained a muscle while representing Cameroon and faces 10 days on the sidelines.
Palladino takes over an Atalanta side that is pretty much fit and raring to go under his management, barring the sole injury to Mitchel Bakker since last season.
Key stats
Both sides have struggled to find the back of the net in their last five games, with Napoli averaging 0.8 goals per game compared to Atalanta’s 0.6.
Napoli have a superior defensive record over that period, conceding 0.6 goals per game to Atalanta’s 1.2.
Napoli have received 2.2 cards on average over their last five games.
Rasmus Hojlund and Scott McTominay have been key to Napoli’s attacking efforts, with two goals each.
Prediction
Napoli have gotten away with their poor run of results thus far, as they remain within just two points of the top of the table. This match against Atalanta presents an opportunity to get back on track following the international break.
A new manager is always a danger, but expect Napoli to pick up all three points here.
