Meeting in the semi-finals of a new-look Supercoppa Italiana, Serie A rivals Napoli and Fiorentina convene at Riyadh's Al-Awwal Stadium on Thursday.
For the first time, four teams will take part, and the Scudetto holders take on last season's Coppa Italia runners-up in the tournament opener.
The Partenopei earned their place in this term's expanded format by ending a three-decade-long Scudetto drought last season, but their title defence was quickly derailed, and they now arrive in Saudi Arabia trailing far behind Serie A's top two, Inter and Juventus.
Led by a third coach in less than a year, Napoli began 2024 on a down note by losing for the fourth time in six league games - suffering a 3-0 defeat to mid-table Torino - and even after last week's late win against regional rivals Salernitana they sit eighth in the standings.
It took a stoppage-time strike from Amir Rrahmani to beat Serie A's bottom club 2-1 at Stadio Maradona, where they have particularly struggled this season - no doubt weighed down by the expectation of their fans - and Walter Mazzarri's men were certainly not convincing in victory.
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