Napoli vs Inter Milan

Napoli return home in the middle of a brutal stretch which has seen them lose 3 of their last 4 matches to host unbeaten Inter Milan in the final match of week 26. Inter will be looking to extend their unbeaten run to 26 matches this week.

Napoli’s woes continued with yet another loss, this time on the road to Genoa. The loss leaves the side managed by Reja in 11^th place of the league table with 30 points on the present campaign. The partenopei sit 4 points back of 10^th place Palermo and 1 point ahead of 12^th place Lazio. If they are still going to make a run at a european qualifying spot they will have to begin winning matches at home soon and that means this week against the very tough Inter. This week the injured list includes Cupi, Garics, Iezzo and Pazienza while Domizzi is suspended. The good news is that Marcelo Zalayeta returns from suspension.

The neroazzurri had their unbeaten run pushed to the brink in their week 25 match at home to Roma. After 80 minutes they were down 0-1 and only a late goal by club captain Javier Zanetti helped them see off the challenge of 2^nd place Roma. Thanks to the draw, the side managed by Roberto Mancini maintain a 9 point lead over Roma with 61 points to their 52. Inter Milan continue to be plagued by a number of injuries but that has been the case for some time this season and they still continue to breeze through Serie A. The confirmed absences this week involve Dacourt, Samuel, Cordoba, Cesar, Cambiasso, Maxwell, Burdisso and the club’s two best scorers- Ibrahimovic and Cruz. Any other side would be paralyzed by such absences but Inter’s depth is strong enough that they should be able to make due in the mean time. Suazo and Crespo will hold things down in attack with Maniche, Vieira and Figo in midfield.

Technically this would be the ideal match in which Napoli could get back on track. They are at home against an injury plagued Inter Milan outfit that is due to lose at some point. However, Inter showed tremendous grit and determination to fight for the point against Roma and were able to prove that they can obtain important results even when their most important players are not available. Look for Inter to pull out yet another draw as Napoli appear too inconsistent at this time to be able to win against a side of such quality.

Prediction: Draw (1-1)