Defeats to Juventus and Lazio have left Napoli not only six points adrift of third place, but also in a situation comparatively a lot worse than last season.
Goran Pandev scored against his old club, but a sensational Stefano Mauri overhead kick gave Lazio the 3-1 victory over Napoli to consolidate third place.
This is to all intents and purposes a play-off for the third Champions League berth, as Napoli have to revamp their tactics to take on stuttering Lazio.
Lazio and Napoli’s injury-afflicted clash, Juve’s trip to bogey side Palermo and Cagliari’s 600-mile journey for a home game are all Week 31 highlights.
Federico Fernandez says Napoli have reset their focus in an attempt to put last weekend’s defeat to Juventus behind them in preparation for facing Lazio.
Napoli’s Morgan De Sanctis may be a regular in the Italian national squad, but Marco Ballotta insists that Lazio’s Federico Marchetti is the better ‘keeper.