Napoli rule out David Neres for Venezia clash as Massimiliano Allegri welcomes back trio

Napoli will be without Brazilian winger David Neres for their upcoming match against Venezia after he developed a muscular problem during their Champions League defeat by Villarreal.

Neres felt discomfort after coming on as a second-half substitute in Tuesday’s match, according to Tuttomercatoweb. Napoli lost the game 3-1, and the full nature and seriousness of the injury have yet to be established.

The club’s medical staff are continuing to assess the 28-year-old, but he will not be available for the fixture at the Stadio Penzo. Napoli did not refer to Neres’ condition in their training report on Thursday, despite his absence from the next match being confirmed.

The injury is another setback for Massimiliano Allegri during a difficult opening to the season. Napoli have lost four of their first eight competitive matches, their worst start to a campaign in 17 years.

There was better news for Allegri, however, as Frank Anguissa, Mathias Olivera and Alisson Santos all returned to full team training. The trio are now available for selection against Venezia.

Allegri is considering changes to his starting line-up following the European defeat. Kevin De Bruyne is expected to begin on the substitutes’ bench, while Lorenzo Lucca and Rasmus Højlund are competing for the central striker’s role.

Napoli will be looking to recover quickly from their loss to Villarreal as they attempt to improve results and move beyond their unsettled start to the season.

Venezia are bottom of the table without a point. The match will be new manager Davide Nicola’s first in charge of the club.