If you’re looking for the best Europa League betting sites, look no further than BetZillion, where you will find expert football wagering picks with the latest football odds on the upcoming match between Napoli and Barcelona!
But even though the betting odds suggest this bout can go either way, our gambling expert does not agree with the Europa League bookies and how they feel about this football spectacle. So here is our free betting preview with 4 excellent Napoli vs Barcelona betting tips you should check out!
The football bookies don’t seem to have a good idea of how this match will go, and if we trust the offered Napoli vs Barcelona odds, it would be fair to assume that this bout can easily end in a draw. That seems fair, considering the first leg in Spain ended in a 1-1 stalemate, but there is a reason to believe one team can come out ahead this Thursday and lock in a spot in the next tournament round.
Many sportsIn-play modeLive streaming25+ sportsSuperb bonusesEasy to useVIP programLive gamesMany bonusesMany bonuses24/7 supportMobile appsLive bettingMany sportsFast payoutsPlaying in an away game is more challenging, so it would make sense for the Napoli vs Barcelona odds to favour the former. However, Barca was the better team in the first leg and should have won with at least one goal to spare.
A solid performance at home won’t guarantee them success on Thursday, but we have to keep in mind that Napoli isn’t the most efficient team at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. Across their last 5 home outings across Serie A and Coppa Italia, Napoli has managed a 2-1-2 record.
That includes wins against Salernitana (4-1) and Sampdoria (1-0), a draw against Inter (1-1), and 2 defeats against Spezia (0-1) and Fiorentina (2-5). A draw against Inter isn’t terrible, but realistically, Napoli’s home record is far from convincing.
Barca shares a similar away record (2-2-1), but they’re undefeated across their last 3 trips. If you combine that with Barca’s appearance in the first leg, it’s hard to doubt the visitors. So we kick off our Napoli vs Barcelona predictions with a bet on the visitors to at least force a draw.
If we take Barcelona with Draw no Bet and the game ends in a draw, we get our money back. So it only makes sense to add a bet on Barcelona to qualify at 4/5, giving us an additional chance to cash in the winnings if the Spanish side edges out a win in the extra time or penalties.
You could only settle for Barca to qualify and call it a day, but combining the 2 wagers makes the most sense at the offered odds. Our second Napoli vs Barcelona prediction is on the hosts to make it through.
Since we expect Barcelona to win or force a draw, it is fair to expect them to score one goal. Barca has plenty of players capable of finding the back of the net, but out of all the candidates, Aubameyang stands out as the most likely player to do it.
He was phenomenal at the Mestalla, and he is worth a bet at 7/4 to score in Naples. Admittedly, Torres isn’t a bad choice at 15/8, but we’re leaning more towards the in-form ex-Arsenal striker.
Napoli suffered a humiliating draw (1-1) last Monday when they couldn’t make it past Cagliari, which effectively saw Napoli lose the chance to climb to the top of the Serie A table. But while Napoli should feel devastated by that result, they didn’t show enough to earn 3 points, seeing how the Blues managed only 3 attempts on the goal and needed 87 minutes to find an equalizer.
Interestingly, Napoli won 3 Serie A games following a Europa League outing. Furthermore, that includes terrible results, namely a 0-1 home loss to Empoli and a 1-1 draw with Verona.
Napoli struggles to balance their domestic league and Europa League duties, which could be a problem. On a more positive note, Napoli performed well in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League.
They scored a goal in Barcelona but couldn’t keep up the pressure and were pinned back. Eventually, Barcelona got awarded a handball penalty, allowing Ferran Torres to level the score, improving the situation for his team ahead of the second fixture.
While playing in an away game should – in theory – work against the Spanish squad, we expect Barcelona to do just fine in Italy. Admittedly, Barca is no longer the same powerhouse they once were, but Xavi has the tools needed to make a splash this Thursday.
Barca’s dominant 4-1 win at Valencia earlier this week was a perfect display of attacking football. Even though Barca are not dictating the game’s tempo the same way they did years back, they can get things done and look like they’re playing with much more confidence than earlier this season.
Xavi is doing something right with his team, and this version of Barcelona is better than the former Ronaldo Koeman’s Barcelona in the season’s earlier months.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has great stats, is playing exceptionally well, l and has scored a hat-trick at the Mestalla. And we can’t look past Adama Traore, who seems to be enjoying his return to Spain. And when we talk about solid performances, Ferran Torres scored an equalizer in the first leg and had 2 excellent opportunities to get his team ahead – so expect him to do some damage in Italy.
After an injury, Ronald Araujo should return, but Barca will miss Dani Alves, who isn’t a part of the Europa League squad. As a result, Xavi will have to pick between Ousmane Dembele or Traore on the right side.
As for the midfield, Xavi should have plenty of selections available, with Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, Nico, Pedri, and Sergio Busquets ready to start.
On the hosts’ side, Stanislav Lobotka, Hirving Lozano, and Matteo Politano are all expected to miss the game due to an injury. Furthermore, Napoli will have to find a solution for their right-back position, with Kevin Malcuit and Giovanni Di Lorenzo both out with knocks.
Napoli and Barcelona will clash on Thursday, February 24, at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples, at 21:00 local time (CET). It will mark their first meeting since February 17, when the 2 teams parted ways with a 1-1 draw.
As one of the most exciting UEFA Europa League matches of the knockout stage, this is a fixture no football fan should miss. And you don’t have to!
The match will be available on all prominent sports TV channels, including ESPN, Cytavision Sports, DANZ Italia, RMC Sport, and more. You can also expect to find a live stream of the fixture on all online sports streaming sites, which you definitely should have access to if you don’t want to miss any highlights and if you’re in for some in-play betting action.
We end our betting preview with another player wager on Lorenzo Insigne to score a goal. The Napoli star player has put his name on the board in the last 2 outings at the Maradona and should be a threat for the visitors.
Admittedly, if Insigne heats up, it could spell a problem for our predictions, but as good as Barca have been in the back, we wouldn’t count on him to produce more than one goal.
If you have free bets available on the match, you might want to consider combining the bets on Aubameyang and Insigne to score into a double bet for a chance for a higher payout!
Prediction: Lorenzo Insigne to score (anytime) – 7/4
That concludes our free Napoli vs Barcelona betting preview for the second leg of the UEFA Europa League knockout stage. But before you bet on our selections, make sure that you visit the top football bookie and place your bets with the best odds!
