After beating Genoa on Monday afternoon, AC Milan are now at the 4th place in Serie A. They want to stay there but in order to do that, they will need to do well this weekend when Napoli is coming to town. The fans from the stands of Stadio Giuseppe Meazza are surely gonna give them a lot of boosts, but will that be enough for Milan to beat or at least get a draw against one of the strongest teams in Italy? Check out our AC Milan vs Napoli prediction and betting tips to find out!
AC Milan
Milan are flying really high at the moment. They’re currently at the 4th place, which is the last one that leads to the Champions League. Finishing the season among top 4 is surely their plan, but achieving it won’t be easy because there are several other teams with the same intentions. There are several teams breathing by their necks, so if Milan lose on Saturday, they could end up dropping down to the 7th place.
The biggest problem for this team is that they’re in the middle of a very tough fixture list. After playing with Napoli in Serie A, the two play again 3 days later in the Italian Cup. And after that, Milan are to play a few more really tough games, including the games against Roma and Atalanta.
The worst thing is that they have some big problems with absentees. Several players are injured, several are suspended, and their top scorer wants to leave for England. I’m talking about Gonzalo Higuain, who’s expected to move to Chelsea on loan as soon as AC Milan sort out his replacement.
So, it’s needless to say that he probably won’t be too motivated in the Saturday’s game. Apart from the fact that it may be his last game in AC Milan shirt, he probably won’t be too eager to score against his former club, in which he achieved many of his career’s highs.
Napoli
Napoli are on the 2nd place on the table with 7 points more than the 3rd placed Inter. And they have no intention of letting go of this position. This is something that their recent form clearly proves. They did lose to Inter on the day after Christmas, but since have been pretty impressive. For instance, in the first Serie A game this year, they beat Lazio 2:1.
And their good run is expected to continue considering that most of their key men are fit and eager to play. Marek Hamsik is injured, but it seems that this team can do without him. Actually, Napoli have a pretty strong bench, so Carlo Ancelotti has plenty of top-class players to choose from.
Speaking of Ancelotti, he’s probably the man who should get the most credit for Napoli’s success this season. This is an experienced manager who knows how to prepare his team for big matches. But, even when he wasn’t their manager, Napoli had no problems beating AC Milan. In fact, Napoli won in 7 out of previous 10 matches between the two.
Team News
AC Milan absentees:
- Lucas Biglia (injury)
- Giacomo Bonaventura (injury)
- Mattia Caldara (injury)
- Franck Kessie (suspension)
- Alessio Romagnoli (suspension)
- Davide Calabria (suspension)
Napoli absentees:
- Vlad Chiriches (injury)
- Marek Hamsik (injury)
Possible Lineups
AC Milan
Donnarumma – Zapata, Conti, Abate, Rodriguez – Bakayoko, Calhanoglu, Castillejo, Suso – Cutrone, Borini
Napoli
Ospina – Koulibaly, Albiol, Hysaj, Rui Mario – Allan, Zielinski, Fabian Ruiz – Mertens, Insigne, Milik
AC Milan vs Napoli Prediction
Napoli are much better than AC Milan, who are struggling with injuries on top of everything. Even though the match is played in Milano, I expect an away win.
AC Milan vs Napoli Betting Tips
- Napoli @2.05 (bet365)