FC Barcelona Vs. Napoli Champions League Preview: Two Lineup Changes
FC Barcelona head coach Xavi Hernandez will two major changes to his lineup when the Catalans face Napoli in a Champions League last 16 first leg tie on Wednesday.
While many teams might go out to try and earn a draw and think about the second leg at home on March 12, Xavi vowed that his side heads onto the field “to win, as always” at his pre-match press conference.
“We have to prepare for the game knowing that there are 90 minutes left in Montjuic. But that doesn’t change our DNA. You have to defend well and have the ball,” he insisted.
“We’re going [out] to win, as always. We are Barca, a draw at Barca is not a good result. We’ll go out like that, then depending on the circumstances we’ll see if it’s a good result or not. But we have to bear in mind that we have a home game and that they will have to visit Montjuic.”
Both teams are the defending Spanish and Italian league champions respectively. When comparing the two, however, Napoli has less stability having replaced its manager in the last few days while languishing in ninth.
Xavi refuses to accept his team are favourites, however.
“The tie is going to be even, 50-50,” he said. “I think playing away first is not a disadvantage. There’s no clear favourite, you have to earn it on the pitch.”
For the meeting at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Marc-Andre ter Stegen will captain his team between the sticks and is defended by a back line of Joao Cancelo, Inigo Martinez, Ronald Araujo and Jules Kounde from left to right.
Martinez comes in for 17-year-old Pau Cubarsi, though Mundo Deportivo still expects the La Masia graduate to get the nod.
In midfield, center back Andreas Christensen and an angry Frenkie de Jong form a double pivot, with Ilkay Gundogan and Pedri in front of them.
After being dropped to accommodate Vitor Roque’s first ever start against Celta Vigo on Saturday, Gundogan returns to the starting line up as Xavi fields four midfielders.
Up top, it is another duo of Lamine Yamal and striker Robert Lewandowski, with the likes of the recovered Joao Felix, Raphinha and Vitor Roque attacking options off the bench as the match progresses.
FC Barcelona First XI Vs. Napoli: Ter Stegen; Cancelo, Martinez, Araujo, Kounde; Christensen, De Jong, Pedri, Gundogan; Lewandowski, Lamine
