Napoli vs. Ajax 10/12/22 UEFA Champions League Soccer Pick, Predictions, Odds

Napoli and Ajax face off on Wednesday in a Group A UEFA Champions League showdown at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. 

When these two teams faced off last Tuesday, it was Napoli that secured the 6-1 victory. Ajax actually had the first goal in the 9th minute, but Napoli started the scoring in the 18th minute and never looked back. Napoli had 13 shots on target and 57 percent of the possession, while Napoli had 43 percent of the possession and only two shots on target. Dušan Tadić did pick up a red card for Ajax. 

Napoli comes into this game sitting 1st place in the group having picked up nine points. Napoli faced off against Cremonese on Sunday, and they were able to secure a 4-1 victory. The final score looked good, but it was a close game for much of the game. The game was tied for much of the game, and Napoli scored three goals after the 76th minute. Victor Osimhen was dealing with injuries, but he’s expected to be good to go for this game, and they are going to need a big game out of him here. Amir Rahmani is dealing with an injury though, and it’s unclear if he’s going to be able to go in this game. 

On the other side of this matchup is Ajax, who sits in 3rd place in the group having picked up three points. Ajax faced off against FC Volendam on Saturday, and they were able to secure a 4-2 victory. They were up 3-0 when they gave up a couple of goals, but got a late goal for insurance. They had 72 percent of the possession and nine shots on target to secure the victory. Dušan Tadić did pick up the red card in the last game against Napoli and will be suspended for this match. 

Napoli feels excellent coming into this game, but this isn’t a game where I think they run up the score as much. I expect Ajax to also play a little better defense, and that will be enough for them to at least keep it close. They might not do enough to win the game, but they are going to keep it within a goal. Back Napoli +1.5 to cash.