Serie A: Locked-in Lazio Look to Nab Fifth from Napoli

Napoli vs Lazio

Lazio are locked in at the moment as they continue to make a late-season run for a top-four spot. They have picked up five straight wins, sending them sixth in the Serie A standings, just two points behind their next opponents, Napoli.

The Romans will now look to overtake the Neapolitans for fifth place with a win at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in midweek.

However, Napoli have been excellent at home and will look to improve their Serie A 2021 odds of reaching the Champions League with another victory.

Talking Points

Napoli’s key weapons all firing at the moment

Napoli have had quite a tough last few weeks. In their last six games, they have faced four of the top seven teams in the league: AC Milan, Roma, Juventus, and Inter.

Nevertheless, they still produced some impressive Serie A 2021 results. They came away from that stretch with four wins and just one defeat (a 2-1 loss away at Juventus). And last weekend, they halted leaders Inter’s 11-game winning streak in the league with a 1-1 draw.

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The fine form of forwards Lorenzo Insigne, Dries Mertens, and Victor Osimhen has been a huge reason for Napoli’s recent success.

Insigne is having another brilliant season with a team-leading 15 goals, including two in his last four games. Meanwhile, Mertens and Osimhen have also been contributing crucial goals.

Osimhen has gotten the start over Mertens in the last two games, but Gattuso could turn to the 33-year-old Belgian to give the Nigerian a rest in midweek.

Napoli will also have winger Hirving Lozano back after he missed the Inter match due to suspension. The Mexican international, who has scored nine goals this season, could take the place of Matteo Politano, who has started the last two games on the right wing.

Napoli have also had a terrific record at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona of late. They’ve won six of their last seven matches at home, scoring 20 goals while conceding just five.

Lazio’s talisman rediscovers scoring touch

Lazio are one of the most in-form teams in Serie A at the moment. They picked up their fifth win in a row last weekend in a 5-3 thriller against Benevento.

Star striker Ciro Immobile bagged a brace in that match to end his prolonged goal drought; the Lazio captain, who is now up to 16 goals on the season, had not scored for his club since Feb. 7. Immobile also missed a penalty and hit the woodwork, the third time he’s done so in the last five games.

Napoli are currently sitting on the fifth place of Serie A table — Gennaro Gattuso during Napoli’s match against Inter Milan

Immobile’s return to form comes at the right time for Lazio, who are right in the thick of the race for the last Champions League place. They are currently four points behind fourth-placed Juventus with a game in a hand.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic deserves a lot of credit for leading Lazio during their winning run amid Immobile’s goal drought. The big Serbian midfielder has two goals — including a stoppage-time winner at Verona — and two assists in his last five games.

Meanwhile, the return of Felipe Caicedo from his one-match suspension should also be a major boost for Simone Inzaghi. The 32-year-old striker has been a crucial weapon off the bench this season. He has scored eight goals, including two crucial late winners in his last three games after coming on as a substitute.

History

Historically, Napoli have had the edge over Lazio. They have double the wins (14-7) in their last 27 league meetings, with six draws.

However, Lazio have made things much more competitive in recent years. They have won each of their last two matches at home, including their first match this season. Ciro Immobile and Luis Alberto bagged the goals as they ran away 2-0 winners.

Lazio’s last win at Napoli was back in 2015. After that, though, Napoli have won four of their last five at home against Lazio, with one draw.

Betting Tip

	Napoli vs Lazio	1X2 Draw @ 5.40
	April 23, 02:45 (GMT+8)

The SBOTOP odds have Napoli priced as 2.07 favourites to prevail at home, with a Lazio win and a draw identically priced at 3.40.

This is quite a tough match to call, especially given Napoli’s impressive home form and Lazio’s recent winning run. It would not at all be surprising if either club ended up winning this match.

However, it’s also quite likely that these two top teams will end up cancelling each other out and share the points, which is what I predict will happen at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.