Napoli vs Sassuolo Odds: Defending Champions’ Clash and Analysis
Napoli’s Home Opener
Defending Champions Take on Sassuolo
Victor Osimhen picked up where he left off last season as Napoli’s main man scored twice in their 2023-24 Serie A opener at Frosinone. Napoli now host Sassuolo on Sunday in their first home match of the season. The defending Serie A champions are well-stocked for another title run but are missing Khvicha Kharatskhelia for the next few weeks. Meanwhile, Sassuolo will look to bounce back from an opening-day loss. We’ll preview the Napoli vs Sassuolo odds in this early-season Serie A match.
⚽ Napoli vs Sassuolo ⚽
Day/Time:
Location: Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Naples, Italy
Head-to-Head
Napoli dominated Sassuolo last season by outscoring them 6-0 over two matches on the Serie A schedule. Victor Osimhen scored a hat trick in this fixture last season and got on the scoresheet in the meeting at Sassuolo. The Partenopei have scored at least twice in their previous five matches vs Sassuolo and are on a three-game winning streak.
Napoli’s Title Defense off to Solid Start
Napoli’s title defense kicked off at newly-promoted Frosinone. Things started poorly for the Partenopei as they conceded an early penalty to go down 1-0. Before the end of the first half, though, Matteo Politano and Victor Osimhen gave the visitors a lead. Napoli created many chances throughout the match, and Osimhen doubled their lead in the second half.
So, the Scudetto-holders managed a comfortable 3-1 win on opening day. Osimhen picked up right where he left off last season when he won the Capocannoniere as the top scorer in the Serie A stats. Osimhen finished with 26 goals in 32 appearances last season. Teams across Europe were interested in the Nigeria international this Summer, but no club could meet Napoli’s valuation.
So, the duo of Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who led Serie A in assists last season, is alive and well. However, Kvaratskhelia is currently unavailable due to a muscle injury. Giacomo Raspadori filled in for the tricky winger last Saturday, and that could be the case again on Matchday 2. Regardless, the Napoli vs Sassuolo odds price the Partenopei as favorites for this match.
Standoff Between Sassuolo and Berardi
It’s no secret that Sassuolo’s captain and 2022-23 leading scorer, Domenico Berardi wants to leave the club. However, Sassuolo seem unhappy with how Juventus contacted him without informing the club. So, Berardi missed Sassuolo’s opener vs Atalanta and is reportedly training away from the club. Sassuolo also claims it is too late for them to offload Berardi in the transfer window.
So, bettors should stay on top of any transfer news, as Berardi was by far Sassuolo’s most creative player last season. They could have used him last Sunday, when they lost 2-0 at home to Atalanta in their Serie A opener. Sassuolo have often been an unpredictable team; they’re often able to pull off upsets, but consistency has been a problem for the last few seasons.
In 2022-23, the Neroverdi finished in 13th place in the Serie A standings and won just four of their 19 matches away from home. If Berardi departs the club before the transfer window closes on September 1st, they’ll need to find a suitable replacement. They’ve already lost key midfielder Davide Frattesi to Inter Milan in the offseason, so Armand Lauriente and Andrea Pinamonti appear to be their biggest remaining goal-scoring threats.
Match Analysis & Odds
Theoretically, this should be a straightforward match for Napoli. They’re playing at home vs a team whose best player wants to leave the club and figures to be absent again. The price of Napoli as 1.5-goal favorites and taking the Partenopei ATS certainly isn’t the worst bet on Sunday’s Serie A odds board. Napoli -1.5 and Sassuolo +1.5 both come in at -110 odds here.
At an implied 75 percent chance of victory, Napoli show -300 odds to win this match. They’ve won five of their last six home Serie A matches vs. Sassuolo, while averaging nearly three goals per game during that stretch. The over/under goal total for this match currently stands at 3.5 and the under displays -133 odds.
Sassuolo are +740 underdogs for this match and a draw comes in at +455. While Osimhen is always a threat to get on the scoresheet for Napoli, it may be difficult for Sassuolo to break Napoli down. If they do, it could very well be Armand Lauriente who does it. The French winger shows +375 odds as an anytime goalscorer here.
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