The Game of the Season for Napoli?

By: Neil | February 20th, 2009

Given our current form, a loss in this game will be more or less a continuation of the past two months. So it would seem like we have nothing to lose. But a win, especially an emphatic win, can turn our season around in the right direction. The question is, will Napoli put all the recent problems behind them and play their best football this Sunday? Two weeks ago in the posticipo Napoli were poor in losing to Palermo. The stage is set for redemption.
What: Napoli vs. Genoa
Where: Stadio San Paolo, Napoli
When: Sunday 22 February, 2:30 pm Eastern, 11:30 am Pacific, 20:30 CET

Leading scorer Marek Hamsik is good to go. The Slovak international has recovered from whatever muscle problems kept him out of the Bologna game. In fact, the only absence from the starting lineup is Iezzo, who is still fighting chronic back problems. Rinaudo is suspended but he shouldn’t be considered a starter even though Reja prefers him to Santacroce.

Napoli probable lineup: Navarro – Santacroce, Cannavaro, Contini – Maggio, Blasi, Gargano, Hamsik, Datolo – Lavezzi, Denis

Genoa are without the suspended Giuseppe Biava who received a red last week against Fiorentina. Juric also misses out through an accumulation of yellows. However, Genoa manager Gian Piero Gasperini makes great use of the squad’s depth. Biava’s replacement Sokratis Papastathoupolos scored a crucial goal against Napoli when the teams met at the Marassi earlier this season. The Belgian Anthony Vanden Borre replaces Ivan Juric.

Genoa probable lineup: Rubinho – Papastathopoulos, Ferrari, Bochetti – Rossi, Motta, Vanden Borre, Criscito – Sculli, Milito, Palladino

Napoli connection: Criscito and Palladino are both local boys. Will they rise to the occasion as Di Natale and Quagliarella did last month?

Basically Genoa is an all around solid team. I think Gian Piero Gasperini is the best young manager in Serie A. His team plays aggressive, attacking football and he rotates his players to keep everyone fresh and on the same page. I want to break this game down position by position.

Goalie: Rubinho is an underrated keeper. One of the reasons Genoa play three at the back is because they have confidence that he can bail them out of tricky situations. Navarro has looked good at times but hasn’t shown he is better than Iezzo. Advantage: Genoa.

Defence: The key to the Genoa defence is Matteo Ferrari. The former Roma player was once considered Italy’s best young defender but his career never took off while at Roma. He is enjoying a renaissance at Genoa as Gasperini has brought out the best in him. Bochetti is solid and Papastathopolous is a great bench player. The key for Napoli is Cannavaro. At his best he is just as good as Ferrari, but he’ll have his hands full with Milito. In Santacroce Napoli have maybe the best defender out of the six playing. Advantage: Napoli

Midfield: Fomer Barca player Thiago Motta runs the midfield for Genoa. On the wings Criscito and Rossi can cause problems. The loss of Juric slightly weakens the midfield. Napoli have a great midfield with Maggio, Gargano, and Hamsik all playing big roles. Blasi’s motivation comes and goes, and Datolo will be looking to get some crosses in. Advantage: Napoli

Forwards: Denis hasn’t been convincing so far, giving Genoa a significant edge in the scoring department. Milito is chasing a scoring title and if Napoli pay too much attention to him he will find either Sculli or Palladino on either side of him. Palladino hasn’t been at his best this year but the talent is clearly there. Lavezzi will cause all kinds of problems for the Genoa defence, but can players like Denis and Hamsik get themselves in good scoring positions to finish? Advantage: Genoa

Manager: Advantage Genoa

The reason why Genoa is fifth right now and still competing for a Champions League spot is Gasperini. On the field the teams match up quite well, with Napoli maybe having an edge in talent. Playing at home Napoli should win this game if the following things happen:

1) Navarro and Canna are on their games. Since Genoa have three forwards both of these players will have to do their jobs to shut down a powerful attack.

2) Napoli can wear down Genoa’s defence. Getting long crosses into the box won’t tire out Genoa’s back three. Napoli needs to be aggressive to try and get quality scoring chances.

Genoa should get something from this game if the following things happen:

1) They can shut down Lavezzi. Easier said than done.

2) Milito can display his usual bag of tricks.

3) The midfield isn’t dominated by Napoli’s extra player

Of course, since Napoli is struggling right now all of this will be irrelevant if the Partenopei play the same kind of game as the last two weeks against Bologna and Palermo. Napoli have to step up and play their best game, or else it could be another frustrating home game.

This should be yet another entertaining encounter between the two teams. Earlier in the season Genoa overcame an early Lavezzi goal an then the expulsion of Rossi to win 3-2 in what was one of the most enjoyable games I’ve seen this year, despite the loss. Napoli had just been knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Benfica and were looking to stay undefeated in Serie A.

Here are the highlights from that game last October:

Hopefully this one will be equally spectacular, but with Napoli coming out on top this time. There should be lots of TV coverage. Don’t miss out on two good teams that play up-tempo football. Forza Napoli!