The series of injuries that have struck Barcelona’s players, especially midfielders (Pedri, De Jong, Gavi), along with Leipzig’s example against Real Madrid, have sparked hopes and optimism in Castel Volturno and in Naples. Two consecutive victories and, above all, the return to scoring form of Hirving Lozano and Victor Osimhen, as well as the awakening of Stanislav Lobotka, have revitalized Franesco Calconi’s team. Two weeks ago, it seemed that Napoli was on an irreversible path to a disastrous season, and in the next nine days, they can salvage a good part of the season. Napoli would be on the verge of the Club World Cup in the USA in the summer of 2025 with a placement in the Champions League quarterfinals. If they manage to secure at least four points against Torino (tonight) and Inter (on Sunday, September 17), the door to a return to the Champions League next season will be wide open.’I’m telling Victor to narrow his mind to one club – Chelsea’The match against Barcelona holds additional significance for Napoli. Italy is in the race for one of the two additional spots in the Champions League designated for the most successful footballing nations in European competitions. Therefore, with Barcelona’s elimination and Atletico’s parallel exit against Inter, Serie A would open the doors to have five participants in the most prestigious club competition on the planet next season. It’s noteworthy that Napoli revived its ambitions in the last three matches (two wins and a draw), while Torino sank its European hopes in the same period with defeats against Roman teams and a draw against Fiorentina. Napoli has been missing three consecutive victories for over a year, since January-February 2023, when they secured eight triumphs with Luciano Spalletti at the helm.Victor Osimhen has been on top form for Napoli since his return from AFCON 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kJFu2TACkp— ESPN Africa (@ESPNAfrica) February 28, 2024 Tonight at the “Maradona” stadium, Victor Osimhen will be especially motivated. The Nigerian didn’t score against Juventus last week; moreover, he missed a penalty which was fortunately corrected by Giacomo Raspadori. Against Torino, Osimhen will play his 100th Serie A match in Napoli’s jersey. In his previous 99 appearances, the Nigerian has scored 61 goals. In the last 30 years in Serie A, only Cristiano Ronaldo (81 goals), Gonzalo Higuain (65), Andriy Shevchenko (64), Vincenzo Montella (64), and David Trezeguet (63) have had a better performance than him. In practice, Osimhen could surpass Trezeguet tonight, and perhaps even Shevchenko and Montella, while theoretically, he could also equal Higuain’s record.Mbappe’s successor at PSG: Two Africans and two Portuguese in a race to fill those Kylian shoesNapoli has a very positive record at their stadium against Torino. The last time the Granata took all three points from the city under Vesuvius was 15 years ago. Since then, the Azurri have recorded seven wins and four draws. There might be one change in the home team’s starting lineup as Amir Rahmani is not completely fit, still having issues with a knock earned against Juventus. Napoli’s best defender will try to be in the starting lineup, but it’s not ruled out that Calconi decides not to risk it, considering they face Barcelona on Tuesday, followed by Inter. Piotr Zielinski will start from the first minute as he won’t be in Barcelona (De Laurentiis punished him by removing him from the UEFA Champions League player list because he refused to renew his contract with Napoli for a lower salary than his current one). In the attacking trio, Politano is ahead of RaspadoriSERIE A ROUND 28FridayFri 22:45: (1.80) Napoli (3.60) Torino (5.10)SaturdaySat 17:00: (1.90) Cagliari (3.60) Salernitana (4.50)Sat 17:00: (2.30) Sassuolo (3.50) Frosinone (3.25)Sat 22:45: (2.20) Genoa (3.20) Monza (3.80)Sun 14:30: (2.35) Lecce (3.30) Verona (3.40)SundaySun 17:00: (1.45) Milan (4.40) Empoli (7.25)Sun 22:45: (2.65) Fiorentina (3.35) Roma (2.85)MondayMon 22:45: (1.95) Lazio (3.50) Udineze (4.40)***odds are subject to change***
