The international break, which saw Mancini’s Italy qualify for the Final Four of the UEFA Nations League, has come to an end and it’s now time to return to Serie A. Matchday eight will take place on Saturday and Sunday, concluding with the show-down at San Paolo between Napoli and AC Milan, with kick-off at 20:45 CET. Gattuso’s squad, who currently sit at third place in the table, are looking to beat the Rossoneri, who are in first place and so far unbeaten.

 The statistical head-to-head of matchday 8 (made possible by the stats section on our website) pits Alex Meret against Gianluigi Donnarumma, who have both returned from their duty with Italy.

 Meret will possibly make his third league appearance of the season, as regular goalkeeper David Ospina is out through injury. So far, the Napoli stopper has made two appearances: against Genoa (matchday two) and Benevento (matchday six). Donnarumma however, has made six appearances. The only match he missed was against Roma because he was positive with COVID-19.

 In his previous two matches, Meret conceded only one goal (with an average of 0.5 per match), while Donnarumma has conceded four (0.66 per match). The Rossoneri goalkeeper, after achieving three clean sheets in the first three matchdays, has conceded in each of his last three outings.

 Comparing the data to the players’ respective appearances, Donnarumma is the most active of the two: 2.16 saves per game (Meret’s average is 1) and seven interventions in total out of the goal (three catches and four punches away), compared to only one clearance for Meret.

 Both goalkeepers can rely on a solid backline, with the two sides having the joint-third best defence in Serie A and seven goals ceded in total; only Hellas Verona (5) and Juventus (6) have conceded fewer. Despite leading way in defence, these sides need to keep an eye on AC Milan, given the fact that they taken the most shots on goal (120) and Napoli are in third in this regard (114).

 In regards to bookings, Donnarumma has been booked once.