Serie A: Homecoming for Conte may not be so Friendly!

Juventus vs Napoli

Antonio Conte comes face to face with some old friends when he leads his Napoli side up to Turin to take on Juventus on Saturday.

The fiery manager was a playing legend at Juventus, a biting midfielder with 296 appearances for the club and two goals in 20 games for the Azzurri. Now 55 years old, it is a decade since he managed his beloved Bianconeri, winning three Serie A titles and two Italian Supercoppas and, since then, he has won the Premier League with Chelsea and the Scudetto with Inter Milan.

A new era is being ushered in at Juventus with the arrival of 42 year old Thiago Motta in the dugout and he too has made a strong start to his new career as we anticipate a fascinating clash between the fourth and second place teams in the Serie A table.       

The hosts come into the game on the back of a 3-1 win at home to PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League, while Napoli, without European football this year, have had a week to prepare since they took all three points in a hugely impressive 4-0 victory away to Cagliari.

 

Talking Points

Juventus find their scoring boots again

After leading Bologna to a very impressive fifth place finish last term, manager Thiago Motta was persuaded to move to Juventus and he looks capable and determined to steer I Bianconeri through a period of transition; and the early Serie A 2024 results are encouraging for sure. He started with a pair of 3-0 wins, at home to newcomers Como and then away to Hellas Verona. But then, either side of the international break the Old Lady drew a couple of blanks with goalless draws, firstly a decent result against Roma, but then the Old Lady’s visit to Empoli last week was a little more disappointing. With the Lions’ share of possession and fifteen shots Juventus had ample opportunity to win, but only three shots on target were insufficient to test the Empoli defence.

So a return to goal action against PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday was a welcome shift, particularly as it was Juventus’ first Champions League game in 22 months after serving a European ban last season. Goals from Kenan Yildiz, Weston McKennie and Nico Gonzalez, on loan from Fiorentina, were enough to see off the Dutch side while top scorer Dusan Vlahovic made an assist; and the Serbian hitman will be determined to be back among the goals on Saturday.   

 

The Conte effect is good for Napoli

Antonio Conte is always box office stuff and he’s made a spectacular start both on and off the pitch at his latest club. The saga over the future of striker Victor Osimhen has cast a shadow over Naples since I Partenopei’s Scudetto triumph in 2023, and Conte has finally managed to move the troubled Nigerian on, sending him on loan to Galatasaray in the relative wilderness of Turkish football. And that opened the door for the summer signing of Romelu Lukaku, in a £30m move from Chelsea, which may prove to be a masterstroke. The 31 year old’s transfer to Napoli was driven hard by the manager who got the best out of Lukaku when the two were together at Inter Milan. Lukaku scored 24 league goals for I Nerazzurri during the 2021 title campaign, linking up with Argentine striker Lautaro Martinez, but his move back to Chelsea did not go so well and he was loaned out to both Inter and Roma.

Now re-united with Conte, Lukaku has scored two goals in two games, including one in the mauling of Cagliari and he also made two assists in that game, which also saw the debuts of two more former Premier League stars, midfielders Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour.

 

History

Juventus have had the better of the head to head meetings with I Partenopei, winning 28 to 19 of the last 58 meetings.

And I Bianconeri are unbeaten in five games and in 11 at home, while Napoli have won four and lost one in competition this season. Both are in good shape so far and, while the early Serie A 2024 betting odds reckon Inter Milan are the team to beat, both Juventus and Napoli, managed by ambitious head coaches, will have their eyes on the main prize; and that makes this a huge six pointer.  

 

Betting Tip

With Juventus priced at 2.20, the draw at SBOTOP odds of 2.92 and Napoli at 2.99 this is a game with all three results well in play and it’s not remotely easy to call. With Napoli free-scoring and Juventus back in the goals I think we will see the net bulging, but there won’t be an avalanche.  

   

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