Napoli and Inter Milan, who are vying for major Serie A honours this season, will also be keen on clinching a berth in the semifinals Coppa Italia as they square off in the quarterfinals of the competition at the Stadio San Paolo in Naples on Tuesday.
Napoli, who are currently on top of the Serie A standings, have been playing some quality football of late, winning their last five matches with relative ease. However, Inter, who lie third in the table, have been inconsistent, as recent results suggest. They have won two, lost two and drawn one in their last five matches in all competitions.
Another inconsistent performance by the visitors could result in their departure from the Coppa Italia as Napoli have dominated teams in the Serie A. They have scored eight goals in their last two games, and also scored three goals in Coppa Italia round of 16 match against Hellas Verona.
Napoli, with such a string of victories and goals, look favourites to reach the semifinals of the Coppa Italia. Even recent head-to-head record puts the home team as favourites, as Napoli have not lost to Inter in their last seven fixtures.
Napoli will once again depend on their Argentine goalscoring machine Gonzalo Higuain, who has been scoring at will this season. Higuain, who is the highest goalscorer in the Serie A with 20 goals, is happy with his form so far.
"Thanks to [Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri] and to the team, we are living a positive moment," Higuain told reporters.
"I'm happy, I'm feeling fine, I work hard every day and I want to thank our manager, who is giving me many suggestions in order to improve and I'm feeling like I'm in a magical moment. We should not look at the standings but just keep focused and keep on working hard day after day.
"Now, we are going to [play in] the Italian Cup ... and we will have to face another important game."
Inter, too, have some world-class players in their ranks, and they need to stand up and be counted on Tuesday. Manager Roberto Mancini will ask his top scorer Mauro Icardi, with nine goals, to bring his A-game against Napoli. Along with Icardi, Stevan Jovetic is also a key player for Mancini. Inter might have scored only thee goals in their last four games, but they managed to put three past Cagliari in the last 16 of the Coppa Italia.
"You have to put the ball in the back of the net and we need to improve our attacking play but you don't stay top of the league for 15 games by chance. We have our qualities and we mustn't waste them. We need to keep calm because it's a long season," said Mancini.
It remains to be seen if Napoli and Inter will go with their best starting eleven or rest some of their big players on Tuesday.
Where to Watch Coppa Italia quarterfinal live
The Coppa Italia quarterfinal -- Napoli vs Inter Milan -- is scheduled for 8:45pm local time (1:15am, IST, 7:45pm GMT and 2:45pm ET) start. There is no live TV coverage in India.
Viewers in Itlay can watch it live on RAI Uno.
Napoli vs Inter Milan can be watched live in the UK on Sky Sports 2 and Sky Sports 2HD, with an option to live stream the match online on Sky Go.
