Milinkovic-Savic replaces Meret for Bologna clash

Good evening, Napoli supporters, this is Napoli Tonight for Saturday 12 September.

Eleven thousand. That's how many tickets Napoli have sold in the free sale for tomorrow's game against Bologna, well short of the fourteen thousand put on offer, and a colder response than the demand seen over the summer. Three straight defeats — to Como, Inter and Arsenal — have left Napoli twelfth with three points from three games, and on this evidence the fanbase isn't in a forgiving mood. Our view is simple: there are no excuses left against a Bologna side sitting fifteenth with a single point. The defeats to Inter and Arsenal were forgivable. This one would not be.

Napoli have confirmed their team news for tomorrow's six o'clock kick-off at the Maradona. Milinkovic-Savic starts in goal for the injured Meret, who's out with an adductor problem. Lang returns on the left after his Champions League disciplinary exclusion, and with Alisson Santos also missing, Vergara is favoured over De Bruyne in a midfield three alongside Gilmour and Lobotka. Anguissa remains out. It's a four-three-three: Milinkovic-Savic, then Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Marin and Spinazzola across the back, Gilmour, Lobotka and Vergara in midfield, Politano, Hojlund and Lang up front. Bologna arrive weakened too: Dovbyk and Zortea are absent, Orsolini and El Azzouzi already out, and head coach Tedesco will watch from the stands, banned after his sending-off against Sassuolo. He's hoping the ban gets cut from two matches to one.

Saturday's papers are split on how Allegri responds after three losses in a row, with Corriere pointing to De Bruyne as the man to spark a reaction. We're not convinced that's the real story. Napoli have conceded seventy-six shots in their last three games, the worst number Opta have on record, and four point oh five expected goals against Arsenal alone. That's a team problem, not a question of which attacking midfielder starts.

There's also anger back on social media over the fixture list: Napoli play Bologna just three days after losing to Arsenal, while Inter get a full five days before facing Udinese on Monday. The Marotta League complaint is back, and De Laurentiis has raised it before.

That's Napoli Tonight for tonight. Every story, in full, at arenarete dot com slash napoli slash e n. Back tomorrow evening at eight o'clock CET.