Napoli v Inter: everything you need to know

Team

— Feb 12th 2022

3 MIN READING

The numbers and history behind Saturday’s 18:00 CET game

MILAN - Saturday sees Inter take on Napoli in Week 24 of Serie A, with the two best defences in the league coming head-to-head. The Nerazzurri come into this one on the back of a loss in the derby and victory against Roma in the Coppa Italia quarter-finals. Napoli approach this game on a four-game winning streak after beating Venezia in the league.

SET PIECES AND DEFENDING

This is a match between the two meanest defences in Serie A: Napoli (16 goals conceded) and Inter (19). Only Manchester City (14) have conceded fewer goals than the Azzurri this season in the top five European leagues.

Saturday's game will also be between the two highest-scoring sides in Serie A from set pieces - Inter 18, Napoli 16 - and the teams that have shot the most times at goal.

Only Inter have won more points (29 in 12 matches) at home than Napoli this season (25 in 12).

PLAYERS

Lautaro Martinez is the player who has scored the most goals against Napoli in an Inter jersey. The Argentine striker has found the net four times against the Partenopei in Serie A. Cagliari (six) is the only opposition he has scored more goals against in the league.

El Toro scored in the reverse fixture as did Ivan Perisic, who could score for the first time in consecutive Serie A matches since April 2019 after finding the net in the Milan derby.

Hakan Calhanoglu, was the other goal scorer in the Nerazzurri's victory on 21 November 2021. The Turkish midfielder has provided eight assists this campaign and is close to equalling his best tally in Serie A: nine in the 2020/21 and 2019/20 seasons.

Edin Dzeko has managed two braces against Napoli, both coming in Naples in 2016 and 2018. He has failed to score against the Azzurri in his last seven.

Stefan de Vrij has scored twice against Napoli in Serie A (both with Lazio) - only against Sampdoria has he scored more goals in the Italian top flight (three).

Four of the five players who have completed the most passes in the opposition's half in the 2021/22 Serie A season come head-to-head: Fabian Ruiz (813), Marcelo Brozovic (780), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (729) and Mario Rui (639) - only Maxime Lopez has done better (827)

David Ospina (78%) and Samir Handanovic (77%) are the goalkeepers with the highest save percentage in Serie A among those who have made at least five appearances this campaign.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

Napoli and Inter have played each other 151 times in Serie A: the Nerazzurri lead with 68 wins to 46, and 37 draws.

Inter have won five of their last nine Serie A encounters with Napoli (three draws, one loss) and have found the net in the last seven meetings - the best run of goals scored against the same opposition in Serie A since October 2000 (eight).

PREVIOUS FIXTURES IN NAPLES

Inter are the team against whom Napoli have won the most home games in Serie A: 37 out of 75 (20 draws, 18 defeats).

Napoli are unbeaten in 14 of their last 15 home games against Inter in the Italian top flight since 2000 (nine wins, five draws); the only defeat came in January 2020, when Inter won it 3-1.

FORM

Inter have kept a clean sheet in their last four away games. They have kept clean sheets five away games in a row in Serie A only four times in their history: in 1951, 1966, 1971 and 1972.

Napoli have won their last four Serie A matches after previously winning just two in nine attempts (three draws, four losses). The Partenopei have also managed to keep a clean sheet in three of those four victories - as many as they managed in their previous ten league matches.