Inter vs Napoli prediction: ITALY: Serie A betting tips on match 2024-03-16 19:45.
[p]Inter Milan crashed out of the UEFA Champions League when losing to Atlético Madrid via penalties on Wednesday, which ended a 13-game winning run across all competitions. Whilst they will be bitterly disappointed by their elimination, the domestic season is almost certainly set to end in glory for Inter as they have a massive 16-point lead at the top of the Serie A standings after last round, meaning they can now fully concentrate on bettering the all-time points record of 102. Their lead already looks daunting for all opponents, especially as the Nerazzurri have dropped points only thrice in their last 22 league games (W19, D3).[/p]
[p]They stand a chance to win 11 top-flight games in a row for only the third time in their history, although Simone Inzaghi’s men will have to get past a resurgent Napoli. Inter have the advantage of having defeated Napoli twice already this season, in addition to winning each of the last five H2Hs at home.[/p]
[p]Napoli are also coming off a defeat to a Spanish club, as a 3-1 loss to Barcelona on Tuesday sent them crashing out of the Champions League (aggregate 4-2). That was their first defeat in seven games (W2, D4) and the defending Scudetto champions can also focus on bridging a seven-point gap to the top four they began the round with. [/p]
[p]While that looks a steep target, the Neapolitans are at least making the right noises under interim coach Francesco Calzona. Ten goals in the last four league games, nearly one-quarter of their overall season tally, is a testimony to their improving production. The visitors would need to be at their best to challenge the leaders, having lost seven of their last 11 SA H2Hs (W2, D2) which included five scoring blanks.[/p]
[p]Players to watch: Hakan Çalhanoğlu has been a lucky charm for Inter, as they won the last 16 league games in which he scored – a run that started with a 3-2 H2H win here in November 2021. Napoli’s response could come from Victor Osimhen, who scored a hat-trick in their last away league game, but has never faced any side more times than Inter without scoring (six).[/p]
[p]Hot stat: Inter did not concede before half-time in nine of their last ten league games, as well as the last three top-flight H2Hs.[/p]