Liverpool begins their Champions League campaign tonight away at Napoli.
Liverpool vs. Napoli - Team News
Napoli has made a strong start in Serie A, has one of the most stable defenses in Europe, and has not been an easy opponent for Liverpool in the past.
Georgian "golden boy" Kvaratskhelia has risen to Serie A with plenty of confidence, and expectations for the 21-year-old, who is playing in the Champions League, could not be higher as Napoli looks to continue their unbeaten start to the season.
With 11 points from his first 15 appearances, Napoli is top of Serie A - ahead of Scudetto title holders Milan on goal difference - and Partenopi is now preparing for his first Champions League group stage appearance since 2019-2020.
Napoli has been eliminated in the last 32 of the Europa League twice in a row in the last two seasons - against Spanish duo Granada and Barcelona - but Spalletti is well equipped with a run of eight unbeaten home games in the Champions League since November 2017.
Juergen Klopp could not watch the game against Everton, Jordan Pickford was repeatedly frustrated in the Merseyside derby, and the Reds coach thanked him for keeping the game goalless at Goodison Park.
While Roberto Firmino and Darwin Nunez failed to break down the impenetrable wall that was Beckford, Neil Maupay will still have nightmares about his incredible chance that thwarted Alison Becker, but it was a worrying performance from Klopp's men.
Of course, injuries have not helped the six-time European champions - especially in the engine room - but with just two wins from a possible six, they sit seventh in the table at this early stage, six points behind current league leaders Arsenal.
Having failed to win any of their three away games in the Premier League so far, the trip to Napoli may not inspire confidence at first glance, but Klopp's side has remarkably won all six of their Champions League games in the past. Last season, they lost 1-0 to Real Madrid in the final.
We best remember this remarkable event with disgraceful scenes before and after kickoff outside the Stade de France, but on the pitch, veteran striker Carlo Ancelotti and his Team Blancos showed their continental flair in a mirror image of 2018 final.
Napoli and Liverpool are familiar foes, having met in both the 2018/19 and 2019-20 UEFA Champions League group stages, but the Reds had the better of only one of those encounters, going scoreless in all three. From their visits to the Diego Armando Madona Stadium.
Team News
One downer to Napoli's weekend success against Lazio was the concerning injury to Irving Lozano, who had to be carried off the pitch on a stretcher after a collision with Adam Marusic at the end of the first half. Here.
However, Matteo Politano should be ready to represent the Kvaratskhelia team in the final third, and Giacomo Raspadori will be on standby after Victor Osimin missed team training earlier this week due to muscle problems.
Diego Diem needs more time to recover from his broken foot, but Spalletti is well qualified for the competition as the 63-year-old prepares for another Champions League campaign with a fourth team - he previously managed Roma and Zenit. St. Petersburg and Inter Milan will duel it out in the first division.
Personnel aside, Spalletti suffered an injury earlier in the week and the Napoli coach will be on the sidelines with an arm sling after fracturing his shoulder.
Meanwhile, Liverpool's midfield crisis worsened again at the weekend, with Fabio Carvalho forced to pull his leg out in the first half and the 20-year-old missing from the squad, as did Curtis Jones (shin).
Klopp is already missing Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Jordan Henderson, but Thiago Alcantara is expected to return to training this weekend and could challenge for a place in the travel squad. With Klopp taking a cautious approach with the injury-plagued Spaniard, Arthur could make his debut for Juventus in Naples, but James Milner is more likely to be in the starting eleven.
Calvin Ramsey, Kawhim Kelleher, and Ibrahima Konate are also in Liverpool FC's treatment room, and Klopp is likely to call up Andy Robertson again immediately after Costas Tsimikas was preferred at Goodison.
Liverpool and Napoli squad for Champions League match
- Possible Napoli lineup: Merritt. Di Lorenzo, Kim, Rahmani, Roy ; Zelensky, Zambo, Anguissa, lubotka ; Politano, raspadori, Kvaratskhelia.
- Liverpool's possible lineup: Alison. Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson; Elliott, Fabinho, Milner; Salah, Nunez, and Diaz.
We expect Napoli to 2-1, Liverpool
While Arthur's eventual introduction can only be beneficial for Liverpool, Klopp's forwards have struggled to convince before the first goals and must now try to do what Liverpool has never managed before - score an away goal against Napoli.
Spalletti's side is anything but saddle tight at the back following the sale of Kalidou Koulibaly, but the Serie A leaders can be confident of winning the midfield battle this week and we trust Partenopi to extend his unbeaten Champions League career at their expense. From the Liverpool Gold Line away.
Date of the Napoli vs Liverpool Champions League match?
- The Napoli vs Liverpool match takes place today, Wednesday, September 7th.
- The UEFA Champions League match kicks off at 08:00 GMT - which means 09:00 local time.
- The showdown is hosted by the stadium of Napoli Diego Armando Maradona.
Where are the live broadcast and TV channels of the Napoli vs Liverpool match?
- Napoli vs Liverpool in the Champions League will be broadcast live on BT Sport 2.
- BT Sport 2 also begins its coverage of the match at seven in the evening.
- Through our live sports event blog, we try to provide a live broadcast of the match, as soon as it is available from its official source.
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