Italian giants Napoli play hose to La Liga side Espanyol on Thursday night in what could be a mouth-watering European friendly. Taking out the Audi Cup, it’s been a long time since Napoli were beaten in a friendly match, in fact the last time they lost such a game at home was back in 2014. They will need to be sharp to prepare for Wednesday night and so the big hitters will be out.
Napoli
The Italians, third in Serie A last season just five points behind Juventus, have been in typically good form over the summer with a win against Bayern Munich on their CV as well as a draw with Premier League Bournemouth.
Summer signings Nikola Maksimovic, Mario Rui, Marko Rog and Adam Ounas will be hoping for more game time ahead of their Champions League qualifier at home to Nice on Wednesday, while so far the club have done well to keep hold of star man Dries Mertens.
Espanyol
The Catalan club have done well in pre-season in terms of results, however their level of opposition has been way below what they will face at Napoli and so this will be far less comfortable.
The side from Barcelona have not managed to land a ‘marquee’ signing this year, their best deal perhaps having been for Esteban Granero who will be hoping for some game time.
Unlike their opposition, Espanyol have to wait until next weekend before they play their first competitive game and so may still be slightly undercooked here and will surely be vulnerable to a smart Napoli side.
Betting Odds
At the time of writing, 4/9 can be found about the home win here with Stan James and Bet Stars. Napoli are a general 2/5 shot here and that appears a more realistic representation of their chances.
The draw is available at all sorts of rates from 16/2 right up to 7/2 with Sky Bet while backing the Catalan visitors can be done at a standout 13/2 with Marathon Bet. They are a general 5/1 and 11/2 shot.
Betting Tip
Given not just the relative strengths of the two sides but also their motivations, Napoli having an important European game coming up, the home side should be further ahead in their preparations and look decent value at 2/5 to win in 90 minutes.
Back Napoli to win with some confidence at that price, however I think a quick start is essential for them so BACK NAPOLI/NAPOLI in the half-time/full-time market at 6/5 with Ladbrokes.