Napoli vs. Atalanta: 12 and Counting

By: Neil | April 10th, 2009

It just occured to me that for all the excitement Donadoni has brought to Napoli the last three weeks, he still hasn’t ended the winless run that started under Reja many games ago. In fact, it’s been 12 matchdays since Napoli beat Catania 1-0 back on January 11th. In that span Napoli has gone 0-5-7 for a total of 5 points. Inter, Roma, and Cagliari each earned more points (6) from Jan. 25-28. As sad as that is, I find it a bit funny.

But there are signs that Napoli will finally break out and win their first game under Donadoni. To start with, Atalanta is one of those teams whose away form is nowhere near as good as their home form. And when a poor road team plays a strong home team, the result is more predictable. To make matters worse, Atalanta will be missing captain and talisman Cristiano Doni through injury. Also injured are powerful winger Ferreiro Pinto, who tore Napoli apart in the previous encounter, veteran keeper Ferdinando Coppola, and Alessio Cerci. Plus Federico Peluso was expelled in last week’s 2-1 loss to Fiorentina and will be automatically suspended.

Despite the absences, Atalanta have a number of impact players. Floccari and Cigarini are rumoured to be moving on to bigger clubs in the summer, and Napoli have been linked with both. Midfielder Simone Padoin is a former Italy U-21 player, and Atalanta has two current Italy U-21 players that everyone is raving about: keeper Andrea Consigli and midfielder Tiberio Guarente. There’s also Austrian defender Gyorgy Garics, who is co-owned by Napoli.

Atalanta probably lineup: Consigli – Garics, Talamonti, Mandredini, Bellini – Defendi, Guarente, Cigarini, Padoin – Valdes – Floccari

One more notable thing about Atalanta: they have a history of hiring some very good managers. Former Napoli mister Ottavio Bianchi was at Atalanta for two years until 1983. In 1992-93 current Nazionale boss Marcello Lippi managed at Atalanta. Other past managers include Francesco Guidolin, Cesare Prandelli, Delio Rossi, and Stefano Colantuono. Most of those managers went on to bigger things after managing at Atalanta, so they have a track record of hiring smart managers.

Napoli will field a team very similar to last week’s batch of reserves. Lavezzi is still injured and will likely start on the bench, while Contini is suspended and will be replaced by Rinaudo. Blasi returns from suspension and will anchor the midfield. Navarro keeps the gloves despite a weak performance against Samp, with Luca Bucci the only other alternative.

Napoli probable lineup: Navarro – Santacroce, Cannavaro, Rinaudo – Grava, Pazienza, Blasi, Hamsik, Mannini – Pia, Zalayeta

One player who probably won’t feature is Jesus Datolo. The winger has struggled to establish himself under both Reja and Donadoni, and he could get loaned out to a Russian team where he can play during the summer.

I don’t like being too optimistic, but this should be a straightforward win for Napoli. If the team is stuggling to score, Lavezzi will likely come off the bench even though he’s not 100%. There’s also Denis, who has scored some important goals this season as a substitute. Atalanta will likely try to attack down the wings with Valdes providing a link between the midfield and target man Floccari. Donadoni should have a game plan that will shut down Atalanta’s attack. However, as mentioned above the attack is already hurt by the losses of Doni and Ferreira Pinto.

Game will be on Saturday at 3:00 Central European Time, 2:00 UK & Ireland, 9:00 Eastern, and 6:00 Pacific. Try picking up a live stream at rojadirecta.org or atdhe.net

Forza Napoli!