AC Milan continue their pursuit of rivals Inter Milan as they host Napoli in an Italian Serie A fixture at the San Siro. The away side are a dangerous team and can cause problems for a Milan team whose attention is divided with Sunday’s match sandwiched between two crucial European clashes.
Milan are coming off a 1-1 draw at Manchester United in the Europa League on Thursday. They fell behind early in the second half and waited until the 90th minute before Simon Kjaer struck the equaliser to keep them alive in the tie.
The Rossoneri have relinquished control of the Serie A title race to rivals Inter Milan after stumbling slightly in recent weeks. They are now second on the table, six points behind the Nerazzurri and will need to keep one eye over their shoulder with Juventus creeping up behind them.
Things appear to be picking up for Stefano Pioli’s men as they are now unbeaten in their last three matches, including a 2-0 victory at Hellas Verona in their previous Serie A outing. However, their recent home form still needs some improvement with just one win in their last four matches at the San Siro.
The problem for Milan lately has been an inability to keep things tight at the back with just two clean sheets in their last 12 matches in all competitions.
Napoli travel to the San Siro off the back of a 3-1 victory over Bologna in their previous Serie A fixture. It was a solid performance from the Naples club as a brace from Lorenzo Insigne and an effort from Victor Osimhen earned them the win.
Gennaro Gattuso's men are making a late push for a European place as the win against Bologna saw them remain unbeaten in their last four matches. They are sixth on the table but have eyes on a Champions League spot with Roma just three points ahead in fourth place.
Napoli are just as leaky at the back as Milan with just one clean sheet in their last six Serie A Matches. They are also on a four-match winless run on the road but earned a 3-3 draw at Sassuolo in their last away match.
How the bookies view it
Sunday’s match is too close to call with the bookies giving Milan a slight edge. SBK is offering 33/19 for a home win. Napoli are priced at 15/8 by the same firm to claim the victory while a draw is set at odds of 12/5 by Skybet.
With AC Milan distracted by a crucial Europa League round of 16 tie, I am backing Napoli to take a point at the San Siro.
Head to head
AC Milan and Napoli have played each other 40 times with both teams earning 12 wins each. There have been 16 draws between both teams, including twice in the last three meetings while Milan claimed a 3-1 victory in the reverse fixture back in November.
Players to watch
With top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic still out injured, Ante Rebic will be the one to watch for Milan with four goals in his last five Serie A matches. Paddy Power has the Croatian forward at 5/2 to score anytime while midfielder Franck Kessie has also scored twice in three Serie A appearances and is worth keeping an eye on at 3/1 with bet365.
Lorenzo Insigne is the man in form for Napoli with three goals in his last two matches. The forward is priced at 12/5 by betfair to score anytime while striker Victor Osimhen could also be worth a punt in the same market at 23/10 with Betfred.
Anything else catch the eye?
With both teams struggling defensively, there could be some reward in the goals market. SBK is backing both teams to score at 8/13. Over 2.5 goals is priced at 11/12 by the same firm while BetVictor is offering 23/10 on over 3.5 goals which was the outcome in the last meeting between both teams.
AC Milan have been awarded penalties in two of their last three Serie A matches and a similar outcome is priced at 7/4 by bet365. They have scored both spot kicks and could be worth a punt for a repeat on Sunday at 5/1 with bet365.
This Serie A match between AC Milan and Napoli will be played on Mar 14, 2021 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best AC Milan vs Napoli prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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