Barcelona and Napoli meet in a match in the round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League. The return match will be played on Saturday, from 20:00, on Camp Nou, without spectators.
The restart of the La Liga season found the Catalans on the first position in the ranking. However, they failed to keep up with rivals Real Madrid, who won 10 of the last 11 stages. Barcelona finished the season in second place, five points behind Zinedine Zidane’s team. Lionel Messi consoled himself with the title of best scorer, with 25 goals and 21 assists.
In the Champions League, Barcelona finished undefeated in Group F (four wins and two draws), a group that also included Borussia Dortmund, Inter Milan and Slavia Prague.
Napoli failed to reach the top 6 (European places) at the end of the Serie A season. However, Gennaro Gattuso’s team will go to the Europa League thanks to the success of the Italian Cup, where they managed to advance to the Serie A final. Oh, Juventus, after the penalty kicks.
Like Barcelona, Napoli ended in undefeated Group E (three wins and three draws), one of which included Liverpool, Salzburg and Genk.
One of the main problems of Barcelona, since the resumption of the season, was represented by the defensive game. Ter Stegen was the only player in the Catalans’ defense who seemed to live up to expectations in recent weeks. Barcelona have conceded two goals in their home games in the current Champions League season.
The Italians have to score to advance to the next round and it is not excluded that this will happen, given the way the defenders of Barcelona presented themselves in the last stages of La Liga. We bet on a duel in which at least two goals will be scored, considering the fact that there will be quality players on the field, especially on the offensive phase. This bet will be combined with a maximum of four goals scored, being an eliminatory dispute, in which the two teams will not risk much in attack.
In the tour match, the two teams drew at Stadio San Paolo, score 1-1;
The dispute on February 25, 2020 was the only official match between the two teams, so far;
Barcelona finished second in La Liga, after rivals Real Madrid;
Napoli ended the Serie A season away from European places;
Dries Mertens is the 3rd best scorer in the current season of the Champions League (6 goals);
Lionel Messi has been declared the “man of the match” three times in the current UEFA Champions League season;
Barcelona: Ter Stegen – Semedo, Pique, Lenglet, Alba – Roberto, Jong, Rakitic – Messi, Suarez, Griezmann;
Absent: Ousmane Dembele (injured), Arturo Vidal, Sergio Busquets (suspended), Martin Braithwaite, Samule Umtiti (uncertain);
Coach: Quique Setien;
Naples: Ospina – Lorenzo, Manolas, Koulibaly, Rui – Ruiz, Demme, Zielinski – Callejon, Mertens, Elmas;
Absent: Nikola Maksimovic (injured), Victor Osimhen, Lorenzo Insgigne (uncertain);
Coach: Gennaro Gattuso;
PREDICTION: Barcelona to win @ 1,65
