Napoli vs Barcelona – Champions League: TV channel, team news, lineups and prediction
Napoli and Barcelona have grown familiar with one another in recent years, and the pair meet yet again in the Champions League round of 16.
The two clubs have endured pretty wretched title defences in their respective domestic leagues this season, although a last-gasp victory at Celta Vigo may have brought Barca back into title contention after Real Madrid dropped points at Rayo Vallecano.
Xavi, who’ll be leaving his post at the end of the season, has overseen a resurgence – purely from a results perspective – since he revealed his decision to step down. He’ll now manage Barca for the first time in the Champions League knockout stages.
While Barca’s domestic campaign has been underwhelming, Napoli’s has been a borderline disaster. The verve of 2022/23 has dissipated rapidly, and they face a battle to qualify for Europe next season. Wednesday’s hosts sit ninth in Serie A after being held at home to Genoa on Saturday.
Here’s 90min’s preview of Wednesday’s Champions League clash.
Napoli vs Barcelona H2H Record (Last Five Games)
Current Form (all competitions)
|
Country |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
TNT Sports 2, discovery+, discovery+ App |
|
United States |
Paramount+, TUDN.com, UniMás, TUDN USA, CBS, Univision NOW, ViX, TUDN App |
|
Canada |
DAZN |
Victor Osimhen missed Saturday’s draw with Genoa after returning late from AFCON, but the striker was spotted in training the following day and is expected to be available for Wednesday’s game.
However, the Nigerian star may not be ready to complete a full 90 minutes.
Cyril Ngonge has offered a spark off the bench in recent weeks and could be set for a start in midweek.
Napoli predicted lineup vs Barcelona (4-3-3): Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Ostigard, Mazzocchi; Lobotka, Anguissa, Ngonge; Politano, Osimhen, Kvaratskhelia.
There’s hope that Joao Felix could return to the matchday squad on Wednesday, but the Portuguese international’s inclusion is far from a guarantee.
Inigo Martinez is expected to partner young centre-back Pau Cubarsi with Ronald Araujo a doubt.
Alejandro Balde, Gavi, Marcos Alonso, and Sergi Roberto are long-term absentees. Ferran Torres is on the comeback trail but unlikely to feature in midweek.
Barcelona predicted lineup vs Napoli (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Kounde, Martinez, Cubarsi, Cancelo; De Jong, Gundogan, Pedri; Raphinha, Lewandowski, Roque.
This would’ve been a highly-anticipated duel had it arrived last season. However, both clubs have descended into meeker iterations of their league-winning forms this term.
Thus, unfortunately, a lower-quality contest is expected in Naples. The hosts are remarkably underwhelming and a far cry from their swashbuckling brilliance of 2022/23. However, Osimhen’s return is huge.
Barcelona have squeezed out a few results in recent weeks, but their performances have hardly inspired. Both sides may be content with a first leg draw.
