Champions League: Clubs Seeking New Glories Go Head-to-head Again

Napoli vs Paris Saint-Germain

As football clubs go, this is a tale of past and present.

Of one side which had its most glorious chapter in the late 80s and early 1990s – inspired by the best player in the world – and a club whose newfound wealth should lead them to great heights in the here and now.

Given the differential in resources, Paris St Germain should win this Champions League match but they failed to beat Napoli in Paris so should not necessarily be seen as likely winners in the Stadio San Paolo.

Talking Points

Yet again this could be a chapter of friends reunited.

Former Napoli favourite Edinson Cavani scored 78 goals in 104 Serie A appearances for the club between 2010 and 2013 before moving to Paris where he now leads the line. Cavani is a doubt for this one with injury but has his heart set on a return.

Napoli coach Carlo Ancelotti was in charge of PSG between 2011 and 2013, winning the Ligue 1 title in 2013.

He then managed Real Madrid and guided them to Champions League glory in 2014, including a certain Angel Di Maria, now in PSG colours of course.

Then there is Gianluigi Buffon who is set to make his first Champions League appearance for his new club and up against Ancelotti, his coach at Parma from 1996 to 1998.

Champions League: Napoli manager Carlo Ancelotti regretful over late equaliser by Paris Saint-Germain — Napoli manager Carlo Ancelotti during the Champions League press conference at Parc des Princes stadium in Paris

Buffon was banned for three European matches by UEFA in June for his comments about referee Michael Oliver following his former club Juventus’ defeat to Real Madrid last season.

Away from the reunions, it’s worth noting the French title-holders have won only two of their 19 games against Italian clubs, home and away (drawn eight, lost nine).

It’s also worth noting that Marek Hamsik, who has played a key role in the Napoli resurgence of recent years, is on the verge of setting a new club record.

Should he play, as expected against PSG, he will make his 512^th appearance for the club, surpassing the all-time club record he currently holds alongside former defender Giuseppe Bruscolotti.

PSG start as favourites and have just beaten Tottenham’s 58-year-old European record as they defeated Lille to make it 12 consecutive wins at the start of the Ligue 1 season.

Yet the Champions League is a very different beast to Ligue 1 as the Partenopei will be keen to prove once again.

Tellingly, PSG went down to Barcelona in the 2015 quarter-finals and against Real Madrid, home and away, in last season’s round of 16, further proof the club is continually failing to achieve what its spending spree of recent years should have sparked at the top level.

That has to stop or Thomas Tuchel will surely be the next coach to make way for the ambitious Qatar Sports Investments owners.

Any game with the likes of Neymar, KylianMbappe, Julian Draxler, di Maria, Dries Mertens and Lorenzo Insgine on show will be worth watching and, with the wily Ancelotti ensuring Napoli are more than the sum of its parts, this could be a real leveller.

History

The 2-2 draw on matchday three merely showed how evenly these sides are matched, even if Napoli were rather unfortunate not to return to Naples with all three points.

Competitively, the sides’ only previous clashes came in the second round of the 1992/93 UEFA Cup.

PSG won the first leg 2-0 in Naples, courtesy of a first-half double from Liberian king George Weah. Those goals proved to be the only ones in the tie as there was a goalless second leg at the Parc des Princes. PSG lost to eventual winners Juventus in the semi-finals.