European football preview: Real and Napoli can remain on top

Several big ties across Europe catch the eye this week with top of the table sides in both La Liga and Serie A facing challenging opposition.

We bring you previews of the key games below.

Real Madrid v Sevilla

A fascinating clash in prospect between the first and third placed sides in La Liga as Sevilla travel to the capital to face leaders Real Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday.

Both sides have enjoyed good runs of form recently, with Real unbeaten in eight games, while Sevilla have only lost once in the same number.

Sevilla have the second best defence in the league this season, conceding only nine times in their 13 games to date, while Real have the best attack, scoring 32 goals at a rate of 2.5 goals per game. Over a third of those goals have been scored by the evergreen Karim Benzema, who has notched nine times against Sevilla in 25 games. With that sort of record, the Frenchman is unsurprisingly 17/20 to score at anytime.

Last time these sides met in May, Eden Hazard’s injury-time equaliser denied Sevilla a first win over the 34-time La Liga champions since 2018.

That seems to suggest a tight game is likely and another draw is priced at a tempting 3/1. However, a glance at the recent head-to-head record, which shows Real to have won four and drawn one of their last five encounters, suggests that Carlo Ancelotti’s side are worthy 7/10 favourites. A win for Sevilla would see them leapfrog their rivals in the table and they are priced at 15/4 to do so.

Napoli v Lazio

Top of the table Napoli host Lazio in Serie A this Sunday and they will be looking to get back on track after a disappointing performance last weekend.

Napoli’s 11-game unbeaten run in Serie A came to an end last Sunday in a 3-2 defeat to Inter Milan and a loss to Spartak Moscow in the Europa League swiftly followed.

Luciano Spalletti’s side will need to bounce back if they are to remain in pole position in the league and a home tie against Lazio looks a good opportunity to do so. Napoli are unbeaten in six games at home this season and have conceded just twice, while Lazio’s away record is one of the worst in the league, as they have just one win from six on their travels.

Interestingly, in each of the last five meetings between these teams, the home side has come out on top, which bodes well for Napoli’s chances and they are firm favourites at 4/5.

Lazio do have the league’s leading goal scorer in Ciro Immobile to call upon (11/8 to score at anytime), but keeping the ball out of their own net has been the Rome club’s struggle this season and that could make life difficult for them against a strong Napoli side. That fact means Napoli to score in both halves at 29/20 could be of interest.

Ex-Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri is the man in the Lazio hot seat and he will have to galvanise his team after their loss to Juventus last week. An away win is priced at 7/2, with a draw available at 11/4.

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