Europa League: Barcelona vs. Napoli Preview, Odds, Prediction

The biggest game of the entire Europa League round is between Napoli and Barcelona, and it takes place at Camp Nou tonight. The two sides are among the biggest names in the competition and come into this matchup with high hopes. Barcelona’s performances are slightly better now than when Xavi took over the managerial role. It still isn’t Barca that we all want to see, but step by step, the former heart of the Spanish national team and Blaugrana is improving things. On the other side, Napoli is chasing Scudetto and is very, very good in recent times.

Preview

Barcelona (+100) defeated Alaves, then rolled over Atletico Madrid before playing only 2-2 in the local derby against Espanyol this weekend. Despite them scoring in the last moments of the event, we can say that Blaugrana lost two points in this one, as everyone expected to see them winning after taking the lead.

A big problem for the five-time European champions are their home games. It seems that the pressure of playing at Camp Nou is too big for this young squad and that they can’t adapt to it. Four wins, with two draws and losses in the past eight clashes

Barca’s games are usually rich with goals, and eight of the last 10 were with both teams to score. The defense is shaky and it rarely produces clean sheets, but on the other side, the attack is good, delivering at least one goal in the latest 12 games.

Napoli (+260) comes to Spain riding a four-event unbeaten streak. They would beat Bologna, Salareintana, and Venezia, before playing 1-1 at home with Inter Milan. They had the lead in that one but eventually failed to keep it and even fought for life in the end.

Unlike in the previous years, Napoli’s games aren’t that efficient. Believe it or not only two in the last 10 were with over 2.5 goals, which was unimaginable in the years before. However, Luciano Spalletti made them one very defensive-minded team, that usually strikes from the counter-attack.

Though, the Italians didn’t have Victor Osimhen for quite a while, and that was a great impact. Ever since the Nigerian striker got back on the field, Partenopei are much better.

Latest News

the hosts have several injured players who won’t play tonight – Depay, Dani Alves, Rajuo, Fati, Roberto, Umtiti, and Balde

Meanwhile, Lobotka, Lozano, Politano and Tuanzebe are all out for the guests.

Head to Head

The two sides met in the 2020 UCL round of 16, and Barcelona had more success in those battles. After 1-1 in Naples, they beat the Italians 3-1 in Spain.

Prediction

Our pick here would be for both teams to score, and we are going to explain why. The first reason would be the fact that Barca almost always scored at home this year, plus, they are improving upfront in the recent days. The second reason is the hosts’ poor back line. We are more than confident that Insigne and the boys have the quality to net at least once tonight. The odds for this choice are set at -160.

Pick: Both teams to score -160

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