Napoli look to continue their impressive start to the 2013-2014 season and challenge Juventus for the Scudetto by facing Atalanta at Stadia San Paolo tomorrow with the help of the their captain, Marek Hamsik, who is in a great shape.
Rafael Benitez hopes to keep his perfect record in this season but in the same time he will be hoping to avoid any injuries as Napoli will face their first major challenge next Wednesday when they will host the 2012-2013 Champions League runner-ups, Borussia Dortmund and may rotate his squad.
Benitez's main challenge this season is to improve his team's defending ability. While Napoli kept a clean sheet against Bologna, they struggled badly against "Mussi Volanti" (Flying Donkey) as they conceded two completely avoidable goals. He admitted that his side were not at their best. "We're at 70 per cent, we can still improve", stated the Spaniard. Having purchased Raul Albiol to fill for the departed Campagnaro who was arguably their best defender last season and is currently having a great start to his new adventure with Inter, many argue that Napoli's defense will be the factor to let them down in their quest of winning their first Scudetto since 1990.
Atalanta have secured 3 points from their first two games. Losing their first game away from home against Cagliari, they were happy to see Torino off with a 2-0 win. Stendardo and Lucchini goals were enough to get the 3 points for the Nerazzurri. Cigarini and Denis having played previously for Napoli will be extra motivated to make an impact against their old side.
Stefano Colatuono's may not be the favorites but they could take advantage from Napoli's lack of concentration and shouldn't be written off. Napoli's defense shoud be very careful as Denis has scored 31 goals in 66 appearences for Atalanta.
Probable line-ups:
Prediction: Napoli are obviously the favorites and should win this comfortably. With one eye on their mid-week clash against German giants Dortmund they might struggle against Atalanta though. All things considered their strong front line will be enough to secure them the 3 points. Napoli 3- 1 Atalanta.