Napoli and AC Milan square off in a Sunday night Serie A clash at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona with both teams looking to find some spark to their campaign. Neither side has looked convincing lately, particularly at the back and could be set to serve up goals here.
Napoli claimed a 3-1 victory at Verona in their previous Serie A fixture with Kvicha Kvaratskheilia netting a brace. They followed up that result with a 1-0 victory at Union Berlin in the Champions League thanks to Giacomo Raspadori’s effort midway through the second half.
That was a welcome return to winning ways for Napoli, who had suffered two straight defeats prior to the international break. However, one area that still needs sorting out is their recent record in Naples as Rudi Garcia’s men have lost three of their last four home matches across all competitions.
A small positive for Napoli is that other players appear to have stepped up in the absence of striker Victor Osimhen, who is currently sidelined with injury. However, the defence remains shaky having failed to keep a clean sheet in the last four home matches, conceding nine goals in that run.
AC Milan are coming off a 1-0 defeat to Juventus in their previous Serie A fixture. They played much of the contest with 10 men following a first half red card to Malick Thiaw and could only muster a single attempt on target.
While manager Stefano Pioli will consider the red card a significant factor in that result, the truth is that AC Milan have not been at their best lately. They have claimed just one win in their last four matches across all competitions and were beaten 3-0 by PSG in a midweek Champions League fixture.
It is not all gloom for AC Milan who appear to do their best work on their travels having won four of their last five away matches in Serie A. However, defending remains a problem as they have conceded in three of the last four matches in that run.
How the bookies view it
Napoli have the upper hand among the bookies with a home win priced at 5/4 by bet365. A victory for AC Milan is valued at 9/4 by Paddy Power while a draw is set at odds of 5/2 by William Hill.
Head to head
AC Milan have a 16-15 advantage with 18 draws from 49 previous matches against Napoli. Milan were also unbeaten on their last three visits to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, claiming a 4-0 victory in a Serie A meeting back in March.
Players to watch
Kvicha Kvaratskheilia’s return to goalscoring form has been timely for Napoli and he will be the one to watch in the absence of Victor Osimhen. The attacker netted a brace in the last Serie A fixture and is priced at 4/1 by bet365 to maintain his scoring run.
Olivier Giroud has three goals in the last five meetings with Napoli and could be worth keeping an eye on for AC Milan. The French striker also has four Serie A goals so far and is priced at 5/2 by bet365 to find the net on Sunday.
Anything else catch the eye?
Napoli and AC Milan have quality in attack and with neither side particularly convincing at the back, goals could be expected here. The Neapolitans have seen over 3.5 goals in their last four Serie A matches and a repeat is priced at 23/10 by BetVictor, over 2.5 goals is valued at 19/20 with bet365 while Unibet is offering odds of 3/4 on both teams to score.
There have been more goals after the break in AC Milan’s last three matches and Sunday’s clash could be tipped to follow a similar pattern at 11/10 with Paddy Power.
This Serie A match between Napoli and AC Milan will be played on Oct 29, 2023 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Napoli vs AC Milan prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
