Parma vs. Napoli Betting Preview – Serie A, September 20, 2020

Parma host Napoli at Stadio Ennio Tardini on Sunday, September 20, in the opening game of the 2020-21 Italian Serie A season for both clubs.

Last season, Parma stunned Napoli on both occasions, tallying an identical 2-1 victory, so the Blues are coming into this one keen to get revenge, and we should see a great battle between two talented and attacking-minded teams.

The Italian Serie A betting returns this weekend, so I bring you the best Parma vs. Napoli betting pick and tips along with the latest odds update, but feel free to check out all our soccer picks and predictions on a daily betting page.

I was expecting Parma to battle against the relegation last season after the Crusaders spent the previous three years in Serie B. However, they battled bravely and easily finished at the 11^th spot of the Serie A standings with the same number of points as the ninth-placed Verona.

Still, the Crusaders will be +120 underdogs to avoid a loss in the opening contest of the 2020-21 Serie A season. Napoli is a better team on paper, and the Blues have to make some amends for the previous season’s catastrophe.

The Blues have finished in the top three six times over the last eight seasons. Back in 2015, they ended fifth, but the Blues were terrible in the 2019-20 season, finishing at the seventh spot, 16 points behind the fourth-placed Lazio.

Napoli decided to stick with Gennaro Gattuso as their head coach, and the Blues spent $70 million on the Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen. They sold a bunch of players including forward Roberto Inglese and midfielder Alberto Grassi who both joined Parma.

The Blues kept their attacking trio Dries Mertens-Arkadiusz Milik-Lorenzo Insigne that combined for 43 goals last season. However, Osimhen’s arrival will cause some changes in their starting eleven.

On the other side, the Crusaders kept their core and improved it with some interesting newcomers, but they lost winger Dejan Kulusevski, who scored 10 goals and nine assists last season, playing on loan from Juventus.

Roberto Inglese will join Andreas Cornelius upfront, while Parma’s fans expect another solid season from the experienced forward Gervinho. The Crusaders also have a new head coach, as Fabio Liverani replaced Roberto D’Aversa.

Under D’Aversa, Parma played some attacking soccer. The Crusaders scored 56 goals in the Serie A last season while surrendering 57 in a return.

We will see what’s Fabio Liverani’s approach, but I don’t expect to see drastic changes. Of course, the Crusaders will play cautiously against Napoli on Sunday because they are arguably a weaker team, but there’s a lot of attacking potential in this Parma team.

The Blues, on the other side, will be fired up to bounce back from a huge disappointment, so I expect the visitors to push forward in numbers. That will leave a lot of space for quick counters, so I’m backing both teams to find the net at -147.

Both last season’s head-to-head duels saw both clubs scoring, while the previous five encounters between Parma and Napoli produced three or more goals in total.