Napoli vs. Viktoria Plzen
By: Neil | February 14th, 2013Insigne has pulled out of the squad with an illness. Pandev takes his place in the starting lineup, while Rolando makes his debut appearance for Napoli as il capitano is rested. Maggio also returns from injury.
De Sanctis – Gamberini, Rolando, Britos – Maggio, Donadel, Dzemaili, El Kaddouri, Zuniga – Pandev, Cavani
Viktoria Plzen currently leads the Czech Gambrinus Liga, and has the best defensive record in that division. They also won a Europa group featuring Atletico Madrid. They are not to be taken lightly, and like Dnipro they are much better than any ranking would inidicate. Many of their players have experience in the Czech national team and will not be intimidated by the environment at the San Paolo.
Keeping a clean sheet is a priority for Napoli – you don’t want to go back to Plzen with the Czechs having one or more away goals in case it goes to a tiebreaker.
I have no idea how to predict this one. The first half will probably be a feeling out between two teams that have (to my knowledge) never played each other. Look for Napoli to turn it up in the second half.
Some Related Napoli Posts:
Category: Team News
Comments | Add your comment
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My comment on Insignie stirred you wrong. I wrote it with sarcasm in mind, with irony perhaps. I am sorry, mea culpa, What I was trying to imply is, seeing that the young stallion is still on his honey-moon kind of….being the eve of St.Valentine , etc.
I have implied the illuminati theory in the past, you have a good memory. No, I just have a deep sense of cynicism almost at a critical level. We have deep racists undertones that drive our sport to a place that it doesn’t deserve to be. The North looks upon the South on such inhumane grounds and some make it a game in itself to undermine our non industrial existence. Am I a paranoiac ? Well maybe it is a symptom of the intellectually and economically persecuted ones …I ‘m just saying…
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Lol at Secondo, I don’t think Napoli has that policy do they?? Not when you have so many lady killers on the team
Personally I think we lost because De Sanctis shaved his beard off.
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It’s obvious the players minds are on Serie A. Not good for the co-efficient but I can’t blame them. The Europa offers little incentive and I blame this on UEFA. The winners get $5m Euro. You get that just for qualifying for the CL. You don’t even get a million Euro for making the Qtrs. Last year, we gave our all in the CL and we ended up buring out in the league to finish 5th… Hopefully now that we’re as good as out of the Europa, we can put absolutely everything into the league and claim at the very at least an automatic CL spot or you never know the Scudetto.
I’m hoping Mazzari starts Insigne ahead of Pandev from now on and I hope we cash in on Zuniga once the season is over. Never liked the way he plays..has a decent game once a month otherwise he never scores, never gets dangerous crosses in and often is beaten by his opponent. Left wing back has been our weakness for a long time. -
Seba, I disagree with your assessment of Zuniga. Yes, he always dances around his opponents and holds on to the ball too long, but that’s cause he can’t cross well his left foot. His speed and stamina are fantastic, he beats defenders often, and besides today, he is a very good defender. If he were playing on his stronger side, we would see his true quality.
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@ Rp46
This is what was written regarding SEXUAL ACTIVITY BEFORE A GAMEItalian Soccer Club Napoli Bans Sex Two Days Before Matches To Prevent Injuries
Injuries are a part of any sport. For the Italian soccer club Napoli, they’ve called upon the lost art of sex bans to keep their players on the pitch and out of the doctor’s office. For the two days prior to a match, Napoli players are banned from having sex.Football Italia has the full story (via Dirty Tackle):
“‘Avoiding sexual activity for two days before a game is fundamental to prevent muscular strains, contractions or inflammations,’ Professor Alfonso De Nicola [Napoli's chief medic] told the Corriere del Mezzogiorno newspaper.
‘It is the rule for our squad. There is also a specific work done by my staff and the fitness coaches which is aimed more at prevention than cure.’”
Young men in perfect physical condition with lots of money banned from sex? Seems unlikely. There’s really no way to track this other than the honor code. And you’d think that sex would lead to greater relaxation and non-stressed muscles, though a pent-up libido might just provide an extra gear of energy.
Then again, to contradict Professor De Nicola’s report, it would appear that avoiding sexual activity for two days would directly lead to uncontrolled muscular inflammation
Elite.
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I don’t see it like that Steve, but I’ll happily eat my words if he can contribute more in terms of goals, assists and not nightmare games like this morning where he missed some easy chances and gave away 2 goals.
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I wonder if Armero will be given a chance to start a match soon.
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I thought De Sanctis could have saved all three goals, he really is worse than useless at the minute but sums up both our goalkeeper’s performances in the Europa League. Cazzarri keeps bemoaning the fact that the team lacks the right attitude in these games but surely it is his job to motivate the players and prepare them for each and every game? Once again we had 3 defenders against 1 striker but were still over run. Do we not have a scout at this club, i mean Plzen are top of the Czech League, came top of their europa league group and beat holders atletico madrid and have a pretty mean defensive record, surely Cazzarri didnt think that it would be a walkover against them? if we dont care about this competition then why did we fight to qualify out of the group? Mazzarri is a loser and always will be, he’s a nobody with a losers mentality, the sooner he packs his bags the better.
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Other a brighter and happier note i wathed the primavera’s game against Lecce in the Viareggio tournament which they won easily 4-0. its great to see a napoli team play without fear and restriction in a proper formation. the new boy Radosevic got two goals from free kicks, the first a cheeky one from the left that curled in on the front post and the second a powerful smash from 25 yards, we finally have someone who can take free kicks but we will never see him get a game under Walter and his team of agist twits. Scielzo got the other two, the second coming from a sweet move and pass from Roberto Insigne. Insigne was kept quiet by the Lecce left back Kalombo but still managed to set up this goal, Kalombo is a Gongolese born nauralised Italian… he could be one to watch out for in the future seemed like the best left back at that age group ive seen. I was really impressed by Allegra at right back and Celiento in centre back. Also the keeper Crispino showed his worth, excellent in his box, comes off his line quick and totally dominates but still his kickin is erractic.
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de sanctis really can’t save anything unless its as reflex save. He has good hands and doesn’t give up rebounds. But anyone else notice that he doesn’t move his feet? He just dives without moving his feet first. I think this is why we rarely see him make great diving saves
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Being a fan requires , in my humble opinion ,requires some basic analyzation of that sentiment. We all are familiar with the side-effects of being a fan, but few of us really spent time in asking, how can we cypher them and enjoy only the positive ones. The positives ones of course are the ones that might make us feel as if we and our team were standing next to one another sitting and drinking a beer right on top of the world. Those words conjuring up an imaginary good place, were first spoken by many a bluesman that came and pasted. I’m just repeating them in my own way. The bluesmen were and are still with that hope that one day their ship will come in and bring them there. They, the blues men, have had their share of feeling lower that a snake’s belly on a cold cold floor.
The blogs across the seas all are submerged with salted waters, over wounded hearts. All have, in what they think is, or are, the primary reasons for failure. Preferred primary performance of talents interacting with sympho-phyisical accuracy with orchestrated precision movements takes a state of mind. When I jam with other musicians, and our respective talents all compliment one-another and wonderful music is created, we call that THE ZONE. The players have to be in that zone and suddenly there is a coherent communication that surges from the field and it moves right on up in the stands and beneath the skins that sit on those stands. That is what I say is the reason we saw what we saw yesterday. Our boys were not in the ZONE.
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Was this … a DANGER zone?
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Well I would say based on their performance it was more like a Calzone ….
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Napoli forgot this was a 180 minute two legged affair… going to Plzen down 1-0 would not have been the end of the world, but the boys pushed so hard to not lose at home and are now down 3 goals at the halfway point.
It will take a lot to erase a 3 goal deficit, but I’ve seen Napoli do it before and a first half goal in Plzen will get Napoli back in the tie.
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I agree Neil, everyone remember the game against Dnipro?
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Dear MR Nap and the always entertaining Mr Mani The Zone, The Danger Zone and the bludy calzone someone will be suggestive and call Mazzarri Cazzarzi next. Who wud gave thought that the room would be a lighter shade of pale. Across the straits, around the horn: how far can players fly? A twisted path, our tortured course, and no one left alive We sailed for parts unknown to man, where ships come home to die No lofty peak, nor fortress bold, could match our captain’s eye. Illuminate that as Robert De Niro might have said if there had been a number three in the franchise
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Like a sailor’s salty dog on a vessel of seven virgins . A voyage destined never to be charted for the sea will be unforgiving to those that fear its darkened harms of depths.
Good-day to you Mates… -
http://football-italia.net/30834/mazzarri-blasts-napoli-mentality
I’m liking fired up Walter, he even took the blame for the last 2 matches. The comments about Juve and our serie a matches are priceless.
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Ciro, the sooner Mazzari packs his bags the better? We’re in the title hunt and you want a new coach? I don’t understand the logic. Maybe put the blame on the team for the shitty Europa performance and not the coach who has managed this squad brilliantly this season.
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With Juve losing today, lets hope Napoli can secure 3 points at home!!!
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Giallorosso
e Forza Napoli domani!!!Matador hasn’t scored in 3 matches, I’m hoping he breaks that streak against Samp.
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