Olivera trains with Napoli again but still misses Lazio

Napoli had a possession session and a practice match on Friday 6 November. Di Lorenzo has begun his recovery programme, and Napoli will be without both first-choice full-backs against the leaders.

by Gennaro SanninoSaturday 7 November, 07:17 CET· 1 hour ago

Napoli-Lazio, venerdì possesso palla e partitella: Olivera ancora col gruppo, Di Lorenzo in riabilitazione — Grafica Arena Napoli

Olivera trained with the rest of the Napoli squad again on Friday 6 November. The session was a warm-up, possession work and a practice match ahead of the game against league leaders Lazio at the Maradona on Sunday 8 November, kick-off 12:30 CET (11:30 UK, 06:30 ET).

Training with the group does not mean Olivera can play. The Uruguayan is still listed as unavailable and is expected back for the trip to Sassuolo on Sunday 29 November. Di Lorenzo has started his recovery programme after scans at the Pineta Grande Hospital confirmed a lesion to the adductor longus in his left thigh. That means Napoli face Lazio without the captain and without the number 17, their two first-choice full-backs.

Gattuso's Lazio arrive with 28 points from nine wins and a draw. Napoli are eighth on 14, 14 points off the top, after losing 2-0 in Turin and 4-1 in Porto. A Friday practice match tells us nothing about the real problem in those two defeats: in the second half, the team stops competing. Only Sunday will show whether that has changed.