Napoli vs PSG Predictions

There are few Champions League clashes quite as big as the one in Naples on Tuesday night. Napoli and PSG are each trailing Liverpool in the fight to make the last 16. While the pair each have big encounters with the Reds ahead, they meet in Italy just weeks after playing out a thrilling 2-2 draw in Paris. That result left high-spending PSG under-achieving in the group, sitting in third – a point shy of Napoli. Defeat in Naples would leave PSG on the verge of elimination, a crushing blow to the greatest forward line in the world.

Napoli have a pretty impressive attacking line-up themselves. The partnership that is blossoming between Lorenzo Insigne and Dries Mertens looks like a masterstroke by Carlo Ancelotti, after he changed to a 4-4-2 to pair the duo together. The Italian boss is hoping to take Napoli onto new heights in Europe, and beat last season’s group stage elimination. While this week’s clash is far from straightforward, the hosts know that two wins will guarantee them a last 16 place.

The pressure is on PSG, following two poor performances in Europe. While they tanked Red Star 6-1, they lost 3-2 away to Liverpool. Napoli very nearly beat them in Paris, with Angel Di Maria scoring a fantastic late leveller to rob the Partenopei of a win. While the French side have been setting records in Ligue 1 after winning their opening 12 games, they look disjointed in Europe. Liverpool and Napoli exposed huge issues in defence and midfield. The Serie A outfit dominated possession, and created plenty of opportunities in the last meeting.

Meanwhile, Napoli landed a huge win over Liverpool in their only home game so far. They’ve won six of their seven home games this season, and dominated the other against Roma. The San Paolo is a really tough place to go, especially on a big European night like this. PSG looked timid at Anfield, and that continued their awful run on the road in this competition. They’ve lost their last three Champions League away trips, scoring in each. Given that, we’re backing Napoli Draw No Bet, while we think they’re a huge price to win with both teams scoring.

Napoli striker Mertens has been directly involved in 13 goals in his last 16 appearances in the Champions League, scoring eight and assisting a further five. PSG are among the sides he found the net against, after scoring in Paris last month. The forward has been in fine form, and he’s impressing Carlo Ancelotti. He was left out of the side, but his form has pushed him back in as the leading forward. Mertens has scored in his last five games for club and country. Friday saw him hit a hat-trick against Empoli, and after six goals in four games for the Partenopei, we expect him to find the net on Tuesday.