There are reports of another injury problem for Napoli ahead of tonight’s Supercoppa Italiana Final with Inter, as Alessio Zerbin should replace Mario Rui.
It kicks off at the Al-Awwal Park Stadium in Riyadh at 19.00 GMT.
The winner will be decided after 90 minutes or, if the scores are tied, go straight to a penalty shoot-out.
Walter Mazzarri was hoping to field the same XI that beat Fiorentina 3-0 in the semi-final, which was already missing Alex Meret, Mathias Olivera and Natan, while Victor Osimhen and Andre Frank Zambo Anguissa are on international duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.
However, Sky Sport Italia report this evening that Mario Rui is struggling with a knock to the foot and is not ready to start.
The most likely replacement – seeing as Olivera is also out of action – is Zerbin.
This may well be Zerbin’s final game for Napoli, as he is expected to join Monza this week on loan, but he already impressed as a substitute against Fiorentina and bagged two late goals.
The new 3-4-3 system remains in place, with Piotr Zielinski again only on the bench, as he is not at 100 per cent.
Inter too are forced into one change from the side that beat Lazio 3-0, as Alessandro Bastoni has a slight muscular issue, so Stefan de Vrij should come into the back three.
Probable line-ups
Napoli (3-4-3): Gollini; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Juan Jesus; Mazzocchi, Cajuste, Lobotka, Zerbin; Politano, Simeone, Kvaratskhelia
Inter (3-5-2): Sommer; Pavard, De Vrij, Acerbi; Darmian, Barella, Calhanoglu, Mkhitaryan, Dimarco; Thuram, Lautaro Martinez
#Supercoppa | #Napoli, le ultimissime di formazione contro l'#Inter: #Zerbin verso la titolarità al posto di #MarioRui https://t.co/7RiaTNniEp
— Gianluca Di Marzio (@DiMarzio) January 22, 2024