AC Milan – Napoli Prediction & Picks (15.04.2018)

Milan and Napoli meet at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, in a match for the 32nd round of Serie A. Napoli won at home by (2-1) the last time they met in this edition of the league, at 18-11 -2017. The record of direct confrontations in this stadium is favorable to the visiting team, which in the last 4 matches won 3 and lost 1. Indeed, the last time these two teams met in this stadium was on 01-21-2017, in a match for the Serie A that ended with the victory of Napoli by (1-2). J. Kucka (37 ‘) scored the goals of the match, for Milan, and L. Insigne (6′) and José Callejón (9 ‘), for Napoli. The Napoli presents considerable differences in their results at home and as a visitor, so in this game the home factor may be decisive.

Milan:

After 15 wins, 7 draws and 9 losses, the home team is currently in the 6 th position, with 52 points won. In the last match, they have tied at home against Sassuolo by (1-1), after in the previous match they have tied (0-0) at home, against Internazionale. This is a team that usually maintains its competitive levels in home and away matches, since in the last 30 matches they register 6 wins, 4 draws and 5 losses in away matches, with 21 goals scored and 18 conceded; against 8 wins, 5 draws and 2 losses at their stadium, with 19 goals scored and 10 conceded. In the last 10 home league matches Milan has won 5, tied 3 and lost 2, for which they have won 18 points out of 30 possible. In their home league matches the most frequent result at half-time was the 0-0 (6 out of 15 matches). Their attack has scored regularly, since they have scored goals in 9 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In their home matches for this competition there is a tendency for few goals, since 10 of the last 15 matches have ended with Under 2,5 goals. In 31 matches in the competition, they suffered the first goal 12 times and only managed 1 comeback.

Milan is one of the traditionally strongest teams in Italy, since it has eighteen titles in the Italian league, being the most recent in the 2010/11 season. This season, the home team shows to have an attack that works, as they scored 43 goals in 31 rounds, with an average of just over one goal per game. To score these goals, Milan usually occupies the opponent’s field during a large part of the game, to pressure the defenders, steal the ball and start their plays near the opponent’s area. Among the main offensive features of Milan is the effective attack by the right and the shots from outside the area. By this style, Milan scored goals in five of the last six games played at home by the Italian league.

Napoli:

The away team is currently in the 2 nd position, with 77 points won, after 24 wins, 5 draws and 2 losses. In the penultimate match, they tied in an away match against Sassuolo, by (1-1). In the last match, they won in a home match against Chievo, by (2-1). This is a team that usually gets better results in away matches than at home, since in the last 30 matches they register 10 wins, 3 draws and 2 losses in away matches, with 25 goals scored and 10 conceded; against 10 wins, 1 draw and 4 losses at their stadium, with 26 goals scored and 16 conceded. For the championship, Napoli won 24 points out of 30 possible points, after 7 wins and 3 draws in the last 10 home matches.

For this competition, they have not lost any of the last 15 away matches. Their attack has scored regularly, since they have scored goals in 9 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In 31 matches for this competition, they have conceded the first goal 10 times, but have turned the score around in 8. There is 1 period that stands out in the last 15 away matches for this competition: they have suffered 3 of their 8 goals between minutes (76′- 90 ‘).

Napoli have already won twice in the Italian championship and their last highlight was in the 2015/16 season, when they were runners-up in the Italian championship. In addition, the team played the Champions League last season, so it is a team of a certain tradition and has been playing well lately. Napoli has many offensive qualities, creates many scoring opportunities, attacks quite a lot on the wings and, consequently, ends a lot. His performance away from home has been very good. In the last six games at home, he has won four and tied two, scoring goals in five of these games. With the best attack of the competition, we can expect the team to look for the leadership looking for their goals and the three points with all their strength.