Napoli and Sassuolo open the 23rd Round of the Serie A campaign, with the Azzurri looking to crack the 60-point mark, while Sassuolo hopes to extend its unbeaten run to five matches.
US Sassuolo
With two wins (against Milan and Atalanta) and two draws in their last four, Sassuolo seem to have finally found their form. Consequently, the Neroverdi have moved into a tie with Lecce and Fiorentina for 13th in the table. All three clubs are on 24 points, seven points clear of Hellas Verona in the final relegation position.
It’s no coincidence that the results have improved as the squad gets closer to full health. Hamed Junior Traorè (broken foot), Mert Muldur (fractured ankle), Domenico Berardi (thigh), Maxime Lopez (knee), Gregoire Defrel (broken foot) and Andrea Pinamonti (thigh) have all missed extended periods of the season due to injury.
The improved results have also coincided with some shrewd transfers during the January transfer window. Sassuolo loaned out Georgios Kyriakopoulos to Bologna, Kaan Ayhan to Galatasaray and Hamed Junior Traorè to Bournemouth. At the same time, the Neroverdi signed loan deals for Nedim Bajrami from Empoli and Nadir Zortea from Atalanta, both of whom are expected to start.
SSC Napoli
Napoli’s sixth consecutive victory, combined with Inter’s draw to Sampdoria, allowed the Partenopei to open up a 15-point gap at the top of the table. Though Napoli were not at their best, their two young superstars, Khvicha Kvaratkhelia and Victor Osimhen, both scored in the 3-0 win over bottom-of-the-table Cremonese.
While the players will be squarely focused on Sassuolo, coach Luciano Spalletti will be mindful of the club’s upcoming Round of 16 Champions League fixture against Eintracht Frankfurt. Spalletti will hope to score early and often so he can quickly use his five substitutions. The Napoli coach would gladly utilize his deep bench to rest his regular starters ahead of the trip to Germany on Tuesday.
Injuries/Suspensions
Mert Muldur continues to work towards full fitness after missing the majority of the first half of the season with a fractured ankle. Jeremy Toljan continues to recover from a thigh muscle strain which has caused him to miss the last two matches. Meanwhile, Domenico Berardi is expected to miss the match after exiting the Udinese match with what appeared to be a thigh/groin injury. However, both Maxime Lopez and Andrea Pinamonti made substitute appearances on Sunday after recovering from their respective injuries.
For Napoli, Giacomo Raspadori will not be available after suffering a grade 2 thigh strain in training on Wednesday.
Probable Formations
Manager’s Comments
Alessio Dionisi:
“If we have only a single game plan, Napoli will overturn it because Napoli decides a lot on the pitch and you have to be good at adapting. Understand, however, that I am convinced that we too will be able to dictate some things but we will have to be good at modeling ourselves on the basis of what we think we can do and on what Napoli will do. We will have to be good at competing in the matches within the match. We cannot concede the ball to Napoli for the whole match. If you do that, you lose, even mentally, because they have many capabilities. We have the quality to make their lives difficult, and surely they have the quality to do the same in return.”
Luciano Spalletti:
No pre-match press conference
Previous Meetings
| October 29, 2022 | SSC Napoli | 4-0 | US Sassuolo |
| April 30, 2022 | SSC Napoli | 6-1 | US Sassuolo |
| December 1, 2021 | US Sassuolo | 2-2 | SSC Napoli |
| March 3, 2021 | US Sassuolo | 3-3 | SSC Napoli |
| November 1, 2020 | SSC Napoli | 0-2 | US Sassuolo |
Match Officials
Head Official: Andrea Colombo
Assistants: Mauro Galetto and Alessio Tolfo
Fourth Official: Daniele Orsato
VAR: Daniel Doveri and Luca Banti
