Napoli-Cremonese Match Preview

Napoli and Cremonese look to advance to the quarterfinals of the Coppa Italia, where Roma awaits.

SSC Napoli

Napoli won their second consecutive match with a statement victory over Juventus on Saturday.  The Partenopei are now nine points clear of their nearest rival Milan approaching the midway point of the season.  Like Luciano Spalletti kept his club focused after their first league defeat to Inter, the Napoli manager will need to keep his side focused after a historic victory against their bitter rivals.

US Cremonese

Massimiliano Alvini was sacked on Saturday after Cremonese’s 2-3 loss to Monza – their fourth consecutive defeat.  The Grigiorossi have failed to record a single league victory through 18 rounds. With a record of 0 wins, 7 draws and 11 losses, Cremonese find themselves at the bottom of the Serie A table, seemingly destined for relegation.  Perennial caretaker coach Davide Ballardini has been hired to see out the season, and will coach his first match for Cremonese at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

Injuries/Suspensions

Matteo Politano was substituted at half time during Napoli’s win over Juventus. The right winger appeared to injure his calf after colliding with Filip Kostic. There have been no updates from the club on Politano’s condition, but he’s not expected to start against Cremonese. Meanwhile, Hirving Lozano is suspended for the match after being shown a straight red card in last year’s Coppa Italia Round of 16 match against Fiorentina.

For Cremonese, Ionut Radu has missed the last ten matches with an elbow injury while ex-Napoli defender Vlad Chiriches missed the last 12 with a muscle problem.  Finally, midfielder Christian Acella has also been sidelined recently due to injury.