Last season, Lazio defeated Napoli in the final match of the 2014/2015 campaign, denying the Partenopei a much-coveted spot in the Champions League and crushing the hopes of their fans. The Biancocelesti would go on to finish in third, whilst Napoli had to settle for fifth. However, this time around, it's the Southern Italian side who are pretty much guaranteed Champions League football whilst the capital club are struggling to even make it into the Europa League spots.
Lazio
Lazio may have gotten the upper hand back in May 2015, but were absolutely humiliated by a rampant Napoli 5-0 on matchday four of this season. Nonetheless, Stefano Pioli's side attempted to rally back by stringing together three straight wins, but since then, it has been a maddeningly inconsistent campaign for the Biancocelesti. A series of losses follwed by draws in the later months of 2015 appeared to have been amended by defeating Inter in the last match of that year, but since the beginning of this current year, the Aquile have managed to avoid defeat.
However, a closer look at their past five games reveals a curious result and pattern with a draw being followed by a win, and so on. Oddly, Lazio have picked up six points against Fiorentina and Chievo, but dropped points against debutants Carpi, Bologna, and most recently, Udinese. Still, if one believes in patterns, in theory, the hosts should be then designated to win this match, but given Napoli's rampant form and their own questionable defense, they could be in for a tough evening at the Stadio Olimpico.
To complicate matters, Lazio have been hit by a terrible injury crisis and a slew of suspensions that has decimated the squad; in fact, they were only able to call up 19 players for tonight's match and even had to call up some of their youth players to fill in the gaps. Pioli will be without the services of Stefan Radu, Ricardo Kishna, Milan Bisevac, Edson Braafheid, Lucas Biglia, and Stefan de Vrij all as a result of injury and Alessandro Matri, Danilo Cataldi, and Sergei Milinkovic-Savic due to bans, making selecting a strong XI even more difficult.
Napoli
Having finished the first half of the 2015/2016 season at the top of the table, Napoli nonetheless will be feeling the pressure to stay ahead of Juventus, who have strung together 12 straight wins to close the gap to just two points. The Partenopei were dumped out of the Coppa Italia by Inter, but are still in contention to win some silverware this season both domestically and continentally. Sarri's side are currently on a six match winning streak and will be hoping to make it a lucky seven against a Lazio team who have been drastically weakened due to the absence of numerous first-team players.
Still, Azzurri fans will expect their team to take this match seriously as any slip-ups could see La Vecchia Signora, who will be facing Genoa, overtake them in the table. The visitors will be coming into this match having crushed Empoli 5-1, and even more impressive is the fact that they had to come from a goal behind against a team that can be notoriously defensive once they have managed to go ahead.
Just as was the case 26 years ago with Diego Maradona, Napoli are again being led by an Argentinian attacker, with Gonzalo Higuain having scored 22 goals thus far. The ex-Real Madrid man has netted in ever single one of the team's six-match winning streak so far, and with him expected to take up his usual position in attack, one would not bet against him finding the back of the net at the Stadio Olimpico.
Which channel is broadcasting Lazio vs Napoli on TV or Online?
Lazio have managed to avoid a loss so far in 2016, but Napoli have picked up 15 points from their opening five matches this year. With Juventus chasing them down, the Partenopei will be keen to make it a sixth straight win to keep the Bianconeri at bay and it will be interesting to see if the Aquile will be able to halt them in their tracks.
For those not able to make it to the Stadio Olimpico, LiveSoccerTV.com has compiled some options to view this interesting clash via TV, computer, tablet, or phone. Here are some choices for Lazio and Napoli fans, as well as general Serie A neutrals who live in the following countries:
- In the USA at 14.45 EST on: beIN SPORTS CONNECT U.S.A., beIN Sports USA, RAI International
- In Italy at 20.45 CET on: Sky Sport 3 HD Italia, Lazio Style Channel, PremiumSport HD, Sky Calcio 4, SKY Go Italia
- In the UK at 19.45 GMT on: BT Sport Europe, BT Sport Live Streaming
- In Canada at 14.45 ET on: beIN SPORTS CONNECT Canada, RAI International, beIN Sports Canada
Live elsewhere? Check out our special Lazio vs Napoli broadcast page for viewing times and options for wherever you call home.
*Note: Live broadcast data is subject to change*
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Follow the game on-the-go
Download our iOS and Android apps to follow soccer on-the-go. It comes packed with features - live scores, fixtures, results, tables, line-ups, stats, TV schedule and much more! Sorry, no live streaming within the app.
