Champions League, Barcelona vs Napoli: Preview, Dream11 and stats
Barcelona will be hoping to make things count when they face Napoli in the Champions League round of 16 second leg clash at the Camp Nou. The match is finely poised at 1-1 after the first leg. Barca have the advantage of an away goal. Napoli will be keen to make things difficult for the Spanish side. Here we present the match preview.
Barcelona have not been eliminated in the round of 16 stage since 2007. They are also aiming for a first Champions League title since 2015. A lot is at stake for manager Quique Setien, who is likely to be sacked if the club fails to do well in the UCL. Last month, Barca missed out on La Liga title as Real Madrid emerged triumphant.
Setien said that the thought of a sack hasn't crossed his mind. "At no point has the thought that tomorrow could be my last game passed through my head," he claimed. Meanwhile, Napoli coach Gennaro Gattuso is hoping to guide the club into the last eight. "We certainly want to write an important page in our history," said Gattuso.
Barcelona have progressed from each of their last 19 UCL knockout ties after avoiding defeat in the first leg away from home. Napoli have won one of their last 10 away UCL games (D4 L5). Barcelona's run of 35 home Champions League games without defeat (W31 D4) is the second-longest. Barcelona have qualified for the UCL quarter-final in each of the last 12 campaigns.
Lionel Messi has scored 19 goals in the round of 16 second leg from 12 games. Overall, he has 26 career goals in the round of 16. Messi has been directly involved in 11 goals in his last five home Champions League knockout matches at Camp Nou (8 goals, 3 assists). He has scored a brace in four of those five games.
Dream11 team prediction (4-3-3): Ter Stegen; Lenglet Koulibaly, Rui, Alba; De Jong, Busqets, Ruiz; Messi (c), Mertens (vc), Insigne. Match prediction: 2-1 (aggregate score 3-2). The match is set to start at 12:30 AM IST and will be telecast live on the Sony Ten Network.
