Villarreal and Napoli need a Champions League result from outside the places

Villarreal are 21st and Napoli 27th in the Champions League standings, so neither side is currently in a qualification place. Their meeting offers a chance to change that outlook, with Napoli arriving in better recent form and Villarreal needing a response after back-to-back defeats.

Napoli beat Frosinone 3-0 in Serie A, following a 1-1 draw with Fiorentina and a 1-0 win over Bologna. Across their last five matches, they have three wins, one draw and one defeat, scoring eight goals and conceding four. The loss came against Arsenal in Europe, a reminder that their domestic results have not yet removed the challenge of facing top-level opposition.

Villarreal have won two and lost three of their last five, scoring nine and conceding seven. They beat Levante and Málaga 3-1 away, but have found it harder to create clear chances at home against organised defences. A 3-2 Champions League defeat to Borussia Dortmund was followed by a 1-0 home loss to Real Madrid.

The European pressure is not new for either club: both missed out on progressing from last season’s Champions League league phase. Villarreal’s current European run has been particularly difficult. They lost 3-2 to Dortmund in their latest Champions League match, and a win over Napoli would give their campaign a needed lift after the defeat to Real Madrid.

Napoli also have several players listed as unavailable: Costantino Favasuli, Alisson Santos, André-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Mathias Olivera, Antonio Vergara and Alessandro Buongiorno. Kevin De Bruyne is expected to feature, with Rasmus Højlund leading the attack. Villarreal are without injured Tajon Buchanan and Nicolas Pépé, while Gerard Moreno and Georges Mikautadze are among the expected starters.

The history between the clubs offers little separation. Villarreal won a friendly 3-2 in December 2022; across five recorded meetings, Napoli have two 2-0 Champions League wins and a 1-1 Europa League draw, while Villarreal won the first leg of that 2016 tie 1-0.

Napoli’s stronger recent record gives them the clearer platform, but both teams need points to improve their European position. A Villarreal win would be a timely answer to two straight defeats; for Napoli, it would build on a strong domestic result and put more substance behind their European campaign.