Napoli v Roma: Preview, predicted line-ups & team news

Napoli arrive at this one with a problem to fix. Last Saturday they lost 1-0 at Venezia, a side with three points from seven games and bottom of Serie A. It was Massimiliano Allegri's side's third defeat of the campaign and left them ninth on 10 points.

Roma, meanwhile, have gone about their business quietly. Gian Piero Gasperini's team are third, unbeaten, and beat Genoa 2-0 at the Olimpico last weekend. Gasperini has named his squad for the trip to face Allegri's side, with kick-off at 6pm local time at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.

The visitors travel short of bodies, with four first-team absentees. Napoli's own injury list is not much shorter.

Roma have won five and drawn two of their seven league games, scoring 16 and conceding three. That is a goal difference of plus 13, the second best in the division behind Inter's plus 12... in fact the best on the table. They sit three points behind leaders Inter and second-placed Lazio, who both have 19.

The away record is the standout. Three games, two wins, one draw, six goals scored and none conceded.

Napoli's season has swung between good and bad. They beat Frosinone 3-0 at home on 10 October, then went to Venezia and lost. Their form reads WLLWDWL across seven games, with three wins, one draw and three defeats.

The weakness is away from home. Napoli have lost two of four on the road and conceded five goals in those games, an average of 1.3 per match. At the Maradona they have conceded only twice in three games.

Over their last seven league games Napoli have three wins, one draw and three defeats, while Roma have five wins, two draws and no defeats. The gap shows in the numbers. Roma average 2.29 goals scored and 0.43 conceded, Napoli 1.43 and 1.00. Napoli's expected goals (1.81 for, 1.29 against) suggest they have been a little unlucky to lose as often as they have, but they have still lost three of seven. Roma's underlying figures (2.18 for, 1.06 against) back up the results.

Roma are third on 17 points from seven games, two behind Inter and Lazio and two clear of fourth-placed AC Milan on 15. A win would put them level with the leaders for a night, at least until others play. Napoli are ninth on 10 points, four points off the top five's Europa League spot occupied by Como on 14 and seven clear of the drop zone.

For Napoli, defeat would leave them seven points behind Roma and heading towards a slump. A win would lift them to 13 points and within a point of Cagliari and Frosinone.

Of the last 10 meetings, Napoli have won four, Roma one and five have been drawn. The games average 2.0 goals. Both teams have scored in five of the 10 (50%) and only three (30%) have produced over 2.5 goals. The most recent meeting was a 2-2 draw at the Maradona on 15 February 2026.

These are tight, low-scoring games, and that matches both sides' current profile. Napoli have gone over 2.5 goals in just one of seven games this season, while Roma have done so in two. The under 2.5 market at 10/11 looks fair, and a one-goal margin is the most likely outcome. Roma have not lost to Napoli since the 2-0 win in Rome in the 2023/24 season, but they have also won only once in the last 10.

The biggest gap is at the back. Roma concede 0.43 goals a game and have kept five clean sheets in seven. Napoli concede 1.00 and have three clean sheets. Roma also give up only 2.57 corners per game against Napoli's 4.29, so they are hard to get at.

The second is attack. Roma average 2.29 goals and 6.0 shots on target against Napoli's 1.43 and 5.57. Napoli are not short of shots (16.71 a game), but they have not been finishing them. If De Bruyne finds space between the lines, Napoli can hurt Roma. Otherwise they will struggle to score.

Napoli should line up in a 4-3-3, with several wide options out injured. Roma are expected to stay with the 3-4-2-1 they have used in six of seven league games, with a different goalkeeper in the side.

Napoli: Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Beukema, Olivera; McTominay, Lobotka, De Bruyne; Politano, Hojlund, Lang

Roma: Vasquez; Mancini, Ndicka, Hermoso; Rensch, Cristante, de Roon, Wesley; Soule, Mora; Malen

The game kicks off at 17:00 BST on Saturday 24 October (6pm local time). It is shown on DAZN where selected. No UK free-to-air or TNT Sports broadcast has been confirmed for this fixture.

The value sits in the low-scoring angle. Napoli have gone over 2.5 goals in one of seven games and Roma concede 0.43 a game, so under 2.5 at 10/11 anchors the card.