Bologna vs Napoli prediction, preview, team news and more | Serie A 2020-21
Napoli travel north in round seven of the 2020-21 Serie A season, taking on Bologna at the Stadio Renato Dell'Arra.
The Partenopei are fifth in the table with 11 points, while Bologna are 13th, having won twice this season for their total of six points so far.
Following their 2-0 win over Reggina in the cup, Bologna made it two wins from two with a comeback 3-2 win over Cagliari at home.
Musa Barrow grabbed an excellent brace; that coupled with Roberto Soriano's goal was enough to defeat the Sardinians, who had taken a 2-1 lead through Joao Pedro and Giovanni Simeone earlier.
Napoli were left shocked after their 0-2 defeat at home to Sassuolo, and it seemed as if another upset was on the cards, as Croatian side Rijeka took the lead early in their UEFA Europa League tie.
Diego Demme's goal restored parity just before half time and Napoli were gifted the 2-1 win after Filip Braut bundled the ball into his own net on the hour mark.
Bologna vs Napoli Head-to-Head
Bologna and Napoli played out a 1-1 draw at the Dell'Arra the last time they met in July, which was the first stalemate between the pair in 10 games.
Bologna are undefeated in their last three games against Napoli (2W, 1D), but the Partenopei won six consecutive games prior to that, scoring 25 goals in the process.
Bologna form guide: L-L-L-W-W
Napoli form guide: L-W-W-L-W
Bologna vs Napoli Team News
Bologna
Sinisa Mihajlovic's injury woes continued as Nicola Sansone and Ibrahima Mbaye joined the lengthy injury list featuring five players already. Gary Medel continues to regain match fitness and is a doubt for this game.
Bologna are expected to field the same side that defeated Cagliari, having had a week to recover from that encounter.
Injuries: Nikola Sansone, Ibrahima Mbaye, Federico Santander, Mitchell Dijks, Andrea Poli, Andrea Skov Olsen
Doubtful: Gary Medel
Suspensions: None
Napoli
Thankfully for Gennaro Gattuso, he has a fully-fit squad to choose from. Club captain Lorenzo Insigne is fully recovered from his minor thigh strain and is set to start, replacing Matteo Politano in the lineup.
Having rested most of his first-choice XI against Rijeka, Gattuso will be able to call upon his stars ahead of the international break.
Injuries: None
Doubtful: None
Suspensions: None
Bologna vs Napoli Predicted Lineups
Bologna Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Lukasz Skorupski (GK); Lorenzo di Silvestri, Danilo Larangeira, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Aaron Hickey; Mattias Svanberg, Jerdy Schouten; Riccardo Orsolini, Roberto Soriano, Musa Barrow; Rodrigo Palacio
Napoli predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Davide Ospina (GK); Elseid Hysaj, Kostas Manolas, Nikola Maksimovic, Mario Rui; Fabian Ruiz, Tiemoue Bakayoko; Hirving Lozano, Dries Mertens, Lorenzo Insigne; Victor Osimhen
Bologna vs Napoli Prediction
Napoli will have had less than 72 hours worth of recovery time coming into this game, but with their forward line fresh, the likes of Lorenzo Insigne, Dries Mertens and Victor Osimhen could cause Bologna some major problems.
Bologna winger Musa Barrow is in fine form, and he could trouble Napoli's fatigued backline.
Both sides are excellent going forward, so we expect a high-scoring game, with Napoli edging it.
Prediction: Bologna 2-3 Napoli