Napoli vs Liverpool predictions, odds and preview

When Liverpool hosts Napoli in their opening Champions League Group A match on Wednesday, the Reds will be hoping that their recent domestic woes do not spill over into the European scene.

Prior to playing Ajax and Rangers in Group A, the two teams will resume their rivalries at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. The Partenopei have had a far better start to their league season.

Naples continues to hear rumors of a Serie A title challenge as Luciano Spalletti’s team defeated Lazio to get back on track after dropping four points against Fiorentina and Lecce at the end of August.

Napoli is currently leading Serie A with 11 points from its first 15 available games, ahead of Scudetto holders AC Milan on goal differential. The Partenopei are preparing for their first Champions League group stage appearance since 2019–20.

Granada and Barcelona, both from Spain, dealt Napoli two successive Europa League last-32 exits in the previous two seasons, but Spalletti’s team is in fine shape thanks to an eight-game unbeaten home Champions League streak since November 2017.

Jordan Pickford, the Everton goalkeeper, consistently stopped Jurgen Klopp’s team in the Merseyside Derby, which ended scoreless.

Naturally, injuries have not helped the six-time European champions, especially in the engine room, but with only two victories out of a potential six, they are currently ranked seventh in the standings and six points behind Arsenal at this early stage.

Although a trip to Naples may not initially inspire confidence in the Anfield faithful after their three consecutive losses on the road in the top flight, Klopp’s team remarkably won all six of their Champions League away games last season before falling to Real Madrid in the final by a score of 1-0.

Liverpool and Napoli had previously faced off in the Champions League group stages of both the 2018–19 and 2019–20 seasons, but the Reds only came out on top in one of those games and have failed to score in each of their three trips to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.