Napoli vs Cremonese prediction: ITALY: Serie A betting tips on match 2023-02-11 19:45.
Following on from their crucial 2-1 win over Roma the week before, Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti was keen to praise the mentality shown by his side in their 3-0 success at strugglers Spezia on Sunday. The win left the Blues 13 points better off than they were at this stage last season, but more importantly clear at the top of the Serie A (SA) table by the same margin.
There’s been so much to admire about this Napoli team, not least that they finished the gameweek boasting the most SA goals (51) while simultaneously having conceded the fewest number at the other end (15). You can probably proportion a lot of that success to the rapid manner in which they assert dominance in their games. Only one team has scored more opening match goals (15) while no other can boast not trailing at half-time in any league fixture so far (HT: W11, D10).
Spalletti will be hoping to see another professional performance here as Napoli welcome polar opposites Cremonese who are currently propping up the table. They’re now one of only two SA teams in history who have failed to win any of their opening 21 league matches (D8, L13) and, with a ten point gap to safety already established, it seems only a matter of time before they’re relegated back to Serie B.
Despite their gloomy long-term prospects, there are positives for the away side to cling onto. They have managed to pick up two results against top-six outfits in Atalanta (1-1) and AC Milan (0-0) this season. A repeat result would see them mark a fourth successive competitive away game without losing (W2, D1), with both wins coming in the cup against current top three SA sides – Roma (2-1) and hosts Napoli (2-2) by way of a penalty shootout.
Players to watch: A brace on Sunday means that ahead of the round, only Erling Haaland boasts more non-penalty goals than Napoli’s Victor Osimhen across Europe’s top five leagues (16). In stark contrast, Cremonese forward Felix Afena-Gyan is still waiting to open his league account, but his last goal did come in last month’s cup win here.
Hot stat: Ahead of the round, no side has conceded more goals from set-pieces than Cremonese (nine).