Liverpool vs Napoli Preview – Prediction, how to watch & potential line-ups | OneFootball

Having already secured qualification, first and second in Group A will see Napoli lock horns with Liverpool for a chance to finish the Champions League group stages as table toppers.

Liverpool booked their place in the knockout stage for the sixth successive season under Jurgen Klopp by swatting aside Eredivisie champions Ajax 3-0 in Amsterdam last week.

Ajax started the game like a team that wanted it more, putting the Reds on the back foot for much of the first half until Mohamed Salah broke the deadlock three minutes before half-time.

Second-half strikes from Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott confirmed Liverpool’s progression to the last 16, while Ajax will have to battle Rangers to make it to the Europa League.

Liverpool’s emphatic win at the Johan Cruyff Arena could have struck fear into the hearts of Leeds United, but the Reds’ inconsistent season continued in the Premier League on Saturday as Jesse Marsch’s men ran out 2-1 winners at Anfield.

Joe Gomez gifted Leeds an early lead as his stray pass set Rodrigo up to slot into an empty goal, but Salah levelled matters with 15 minutes played.

Klopp’s side looked poised for the win, but Illan Meslier refused to be beaten again, making an incredible nine saves to deny the Reds a victory.

Meslier’s heroics came in handy when Crysencio Summerville sent the away fans wild with a dramatic 89th-minute winner.

Liverpool need to beat Napoli by at least three goals in front of their home crowd, but their inconsistency makes the possibility of a win look slim.

Napoli’s 4-0 victory against Sassuolo on Saturday extended their winning run to a remarkable 13 matches in all competitions, and Luciano Spalletti’s side are the team to beat this season.

Their 3-0 win against Rangers last week saw them record five wins from five games in this season’s Champions League.

They have scored 20 goals across those victories, four more than any other team in this season’s group stage.

However, with the top spot not quite assured for them yet despite being in a strong position, Spalletti will be urging his players to send out a statement by piling on the misery for Klopp’s men.

This will be Klopp’s 100th game as a manager in the Champions League, across spells with Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool.

He will become the first German coach to take charge of a century of games in the competition and will be looking for a win to mark his milestone.

Match Preview

Liverpool

Playing more for pride than anything else, Klopp’s men will need to be at their best against one of the best teams in Europe this term if they are going to avenge their defeat in Naples.

However, they have lost their last two games against Italian sides in the Champions League, both of which came this year (0-1 v Inter Milan in March and this fixture’s reverse tie, where they lost 4-1).

But they have never previously lost three games in a row against Italian opposition in the European competition.

Napoli

Napoli were imperious in the reverse fixture, and their current form suggests they could do the double over the Reds, but their record at Anfield is not the best.

The Gli Azzurri are winless on all three occasions where they have travelled to face Liverpool in European competition (D1, L2).

They have also never won any of their last 11 meetings against English opposition away from home in any European competition (D3, L8).

However, they are unbeaten on the last two trips, drawing 1-1 against Liverpool in November 2019 and 2-2 v Leicester City in the Europa League in September 2021.

Liverpool vs Napoli Predicted Line-ups

Liverpool (4-3-3): Alisson; James Milner, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil Van Dijk, Kostas Tsimikas; Harvey Elliott, Jordan Henderson, Curtis Jones; Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Fabio Carvalho.

Napoli (4-3-3): Alex Meret; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Leo Ostigard, Min-Jae Kim, Mario Rui; Tanguy Ndombele, Stanislav Lobotka, Eljif Elmas; Hirving Lozano, Giovanni Simeone, Giacomo Raspadori.

How to Watch?

Liverpool vs Napoli, alongside all other matches in Europe’s most prestigious club competition this season, is available to watch online via Champions League live streams.

And if you are interested in attending a future UCL game, see our Champions League tickets page for more information.

Liverpool vs Napoli Prediction

With both teams likely to rest players with this match not having any real impact on their campaigns, a draw seems the most likely outcome.

But given Napoli’s rampaging form and Liverpool’s inconsistency, the Neapolitans should have enough to maintain their winning streak.

Liverpool 1-3 Napoli