Preview: Napoli vs Fiorentina - prediction, team news, lineups

After damaging back-to-back defeats, Napoli will try to pick up the pieces of their season when they welcome Fiorentina to Stadio Maradona on Sunday.

Losing to Juventus harmed any hopes of defending the Serie A title, before the Partenopei were dumped out of Europe three days later; meanwhile, their visitors are still fighting for survival.

Match preview

Having previously failed to beat 10-man Copenhagen in their penultimate Champions League fixture, Napoli's ailing campaign plumbed new depths last week, when they were taken apart by one of their bitterest rivals.

Juventus ran out 3-0 winners as Antonio Conte returned to his former club, leaving the Partenopei in fourth place - now nine points behind Serie A leaders Inter Milan.

Hit by a fresh slate of injuries, Conte's side then hosted another of his old teams, Chelsea, in Wednesday's chaotic league-phase finale.

Despite fighting back from behind to lead at half time, Napoli then wilted under severe second-half pressure and suffered a costly 3-2 defeat - their first loss on home soil for over a year.

That sent them crashing out of the Champions League, while extending Conte's dismal record in Europe, and they will have little time to reflect before returning to action.

Though their proud run without a home defeat has finally ended, the Scudetto holders are still unbeaten in 21 Serie A games at Stadio Maradona, and they could match a longstanding streak this weekend.

Only once this century have Napoli recorded a longer undefeated sequence in top-flight home fixtures: 22 consecutive games, between August 2015 and September 2016.

With seven wins and three draws at the Maradona so far, they will now aim to take care of business against relegation-threatened Fiorentina, who they beat 3-1 in Florence earlier this season.

As well as losing each of the last three, Fiorentina have kept just a single clean sheet across their last 11 league meetings with Napoli, conceding an average of 2.2 goals per game.

However, over the last seven Serie A matchdays, the Tuscan club have accrued just one point fewer than their counterparts from Campania, with a tally of 11 hauling them closer to safety.

The Viola had begun to turn things around after an awful first part of the season, but two recent setbacks have halted their positive start to 2026.

Last week's 2-1 home loss to fellow strugglers Cagliari left them inside the bottom three, also ending a four-game streak without defeat.

Then, Fiorentina's first Coppa Italia tie of the season saw the six-time winners dumped out by Como, who won 3-1 at Stadio Franchi on Tuesday evening.

Before facing Jagiellonia Bialystok in the Conference League playoffs next month, Paolo Vanoli's side face a couple of tough away days - visiting Naples this week, then travelling to Como.

Having posted just one away win in Serie A - a 2-1 victory over Bologna in the recent Derby dell'Appeninno - both look like daunting tasks.

Napoli Serie A form:

W D D D W L

Napoli form (all competitions):

D D W D L L

Fiorentina Serie A form:

W D D W L L

Fiorentina form (all competitions):

L W D D W L

Team News

Napoli remain mired in an endless injury crisis, with long-term absentees Kevin De Bruyne, Frank Anguissa and Billy Gilmour being joined by several others on the sidelines.

Fit-again Alex Meret has replaced injured goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, but wingers Matteo Politano and David Neres are both ruled out, while defensive rock Amir Rrahmani is also unavailable.

Up front, top scorer Rasmus Hojlund has recently gone six league games without finding the net, but Romelu Lukaku is still short of fitness after a long layoff and Lorenzo Lucca has left the club.

Meanwhile, Naples-born midfielder Rolando Mandragora is Fiorentina's six-goal top scorer in Serie A, with the Viola's forwards continually misfiring.

Roberto Piccoli has two strikes in his last three appearances - but only one from eight previous games against Napoli - and he could lead the visitors' attack.

Main marksman Moise Kean is still struggling with an ankle problem, while Piccoli has picked up a minor muscular strain, so it remains to be seen who starts.

Vanoli - who hopes to have Fabiano Parisi back in the fold following an injury - will reverse several changes made in Tuesday's cup defeat to Como, including the return of captain David De Gea.

Napoli possible starting lineup:

Meret; Beukema, Jesus, Buongiorno; Di Lorenzo, Lobotka, McTominay, Spinazzola; Vergara, Elmas; Hojlund

Fiorentina possible starting lineup:

De Gea; Dodo, Comuzzo, Pongracic, Gosens; Fagioli; Solomon, Mandragora, Brescianini, Gudmundsson; Piccoli