Napoli out to stop the rot, Inter should cruise at home

ROME: Napoli travel to Turin to meet combative Torino tomorrow looking to recover from two poor showings in front of a Naples crowd.

The Neapolitans slipped to second place in the Serie A behind Inter Milan, losing 1-0 at home to champions Juventus and drawing 0-0 last weekend against Fiorentina.

Worsening matters between two disappointing results was elimination from the Champions League and the ensuing relegation to the Europa League.

The team’s trademark speed and stamina have waned in recent weeks, partly due to the absence of the injured leftback Faouzi Ghoulam since early November: Now winger Lorenzo Insigne is out as well with groin problems that surfaced against Juve.

Napoli’s domestic season is however far from compromised as Inter are just one point ahead, with Juve one behind three rounds from the mid-season mark.

Coach Maurizio Sarri, tried not to dramatize the situation.

“Football is like life – the tough times come sooner or later but there are positive moments too,” Sarri said. “We need to show that we’re strong enough to react and keep believing we can do well, as we were up until a few matches ago. The strongest always pick themselves up and react.”

Still, Torino can be a tough hur-

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dle. Ranked ninth, Il Toro won 3-1 at fifth-place Lazio on Monday and their only home defeat dates back to a 1-0 against Roma in October. Inter’s task looks easier at home to Udinese, while, also tomorrow, Roma host Cagliari. The Rome Giallorossi are fourth, five points from the top with a game in hand. Juventus travel to Bologna on Sunday, their issue being the form and mood of Argentina ace Paulo Dybala, who has notably underperformed lately and is often benched after scoring 12 goals early in the season. Pavel Nedved, the Juve vice president and former star midfielder, has urged Dybala to improve his focus. “We will certainly need to have Dybala back in top form,” the 2003 Ballon d’Or winner said. “He is 24 and at that age you can have ups and downs, but he knows he has a club willing to support him. “As a footballer he can reach maximum goals. My only advice is to give always his best in training and to do sacrifices in his private life.” Struggling giants AC Milan open the Sunday programme at second-last Verona after beating them 3-0 Wednesday in the Italian Cup. Sampdoria v Sassuolo, Fiorentina v Genoa, Crotone v Chievo and Benevento v Spal and Atalanta v Lazio are the other games.