Sparta vs. Napoli: Issues and Decisions That Will Shape Europa League Game

Napoli travel away to face Sparta Prague on Matchday 5 of the Europa League. The Partenopei were successful in defeating Sparta during the first encounter of the group stage, with a 3-1 scoreline.

Rafael Benitez’s men enter the contest in low spirits after throwing away a two-goal lead to Cagliari this past weekend and dropping two points in the process.

But the group will need to refocus immediately, seeing as they face their toughest group-stage opponent in Sparta. Both sides are tied on nine points; Swiss-based side Young Boys trail closely behind the leaders on six points.

There is little room for error for Napoli.

At the very least a draw will surely put Napoli in a good position to progress into the next round. If they do fail to garner any points, they could potentially find themselves in a familiar situation as last year's Champions League campaign—exiting from the group on 12 points.

Here are some key issues and decisions that will shape this Thursday’s Europa League clash.

Tightening Up the Defence

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Benitez opted to start Henrique in place of starting centre-back Raul Albiol for the Cagliari clash, a decision the Spanish tactician might be regretting.

Henrique has not featured much this season, and the lack of minutes may have affected the defender's performance. The Brazilian international put in a disappointing performance and was at fault for Cagliari’s third goal.

Speaking after the match, Benitez told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia), “Of course it is annoying, as after so much work we make these mistakes, I cannot be satisfied. We had the game in hand.”

Albiol will most likely get the nod for of the Sparta match and will need to bring his commanding abilities back to Napoli’s defence. Prior to the Cagliari match, the Partenopei consecutively recorded three clean sheets in all competitions, per WhoScored.com

Kalidou Koulibaly will also need to bounce back quickly from a mediocre performance against the Sardinians. Furthermore, full-backs Giandomenico Mesto and Miguel Britos started in the club’s last Europa League contest and could feature again against Sparta.

Creating More Chances in Attack

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Napoli have become short on options in the offensive department. Football Italia reports that Lorenzo Insigne is expected to be out for five months, and Corriere dello Sport recently reported (h/t Football Italia) that Michu could require ankle surgery that will further sideline the Spaniard for an extended period of time.

Dries Mertens represents Napoli’s other offensive option but he too will be unavailable for the Sparta match. The 27-year-old suffered a concussion while on international duty with Belgium and, according to Football Italia, is still recovering from the blow and will miss the match.

This leaves Jonathan de Guzman a starting role in attack. The Dutch international has featured in each offensive position in Benitez’s 4-2-3-1 setup. De Guzman started in the No. 10 role in Napoli’s last Europa League match against Young Boys. He completed a hat-trick but oddly enough was not successful in leading Napoli’s attack to create chances.

Against Cagliari, De Guzman interchanged positions with captain Marek Hamsik a few times but again did not help form a coherent attack for Napoli. He will need to be effective in stamping his mark on the match to give his side a chance of taking the full three points.

Keeping Concentration

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Napoli’s biggest threat to qualifying will be themselves. The side have produced great attacking displays this campaign but sometimes fail to keep concentration and end up conceding.

The Partenopei have failed to register full points after going ahead against Palermo, Inter and Cagliari.

Speaking after their last match, Benitez told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia): 

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Clearly after three or four games in which we defended very well, today we had the game in hand and could’ve gone more than 2-0 up, but lowered the intensity level. That allowed Cagliari back into the match.

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Benitez will need to keep his men focused on the task ahead. Any slip-ups might cost them qualification to the next round.