Barcelona Vs. Napoli: Derbi Maradona In The Last 16 Of The Champions League

Lamine Yamal, the 16-year-old target, became the youngest player to appear in the knockout round of the Champions League, (photo: x @FCBarcelona)

JAKARTA - Barcelona and Napoli will meet again in the second leg of the Champions League last 16 on Tuesday, March 12 where only one team can advance to the quarter-finals. This match also deserves to be called the Maradona derby, because the two clubs have been defended by the Argentine legend.

Napoli as Serie A last season will visit La Liga champions last season, Barcelona, at their temporary home in Montjuic, after a 1-1 draw at Napoli late last month.

Robert Lewandowski's goal in Napoli maintains Barcelona's unbeaten record against Italian clubs, who now have to win their first win over the Blaugrana to qualify in the two-legged match.

Although 'derby Maradona' is a game that has rarely been played until recently, Barcelona and Napoli have met several times in UEFA competitions over the past few years, where both teams scored goals in each meeting.

After relying on returning heroes, Victor Osimhen, to save a draw in the first leg at Maradona Stadium in February - after Lewandowski - Napoli's opener still had to be able to record their first win over their Spanish opponents after seven attempts.

They also held back Barcelona 1-1 in their final visit to Catalonia, in February 2022, but lost one week later at home, when the two teams met in the knockout stages of the Europa League.

Goals from Jordi Alba and Frenkie de Jong brought Barcelona into control of the game, although Napoli were able to reduce their deficit - thanks to a penalty from Lorenzo Insigne - but guests scored two more goals, through Gerard Pique and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang; Matteo Politano's goal was also unable to entertain Partenopei fans.

Several years earlier, the two also met in the last 16 of the Champions League, where their two-legged matches were played on different sides of the six-month hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In February 2020, goals from Dries Mertens and Antoine Griezmann made both teams share points at Napoli, but nearly half a year later, at Camp Nou which was almost empty, Barcelona advanced to the quarter-finals with a 3-1 win in the second leg.

Goal scorers for Barcelona in the match were Clement Lenglet, Lionel Messi, and Luis Suarez, all of whom were scored by first-half papa.

There was still time for Insigne to answer from the penalty spot, at the end of the first half full of action, but Napoli couldn't cover up the further deficit and Barcelona won 4-2 on aggregate.

Just before the unfortunate season began in 2019-20, Messi was declared absent from the United States tour of Barcelona with a calf injury, but that didn't stop his colleagues from winning both prestigious friendly matches, held in Florida and Michigan.

In this match, FC Barcelona faces a worsening injury crisis ahead of the second leg. Frenkie De Jong and Pedri will miss the host's main squad on Tuesday night with injuries.

Gavi, who is a victim of an ACL injury, will also be absent, so Andreas Christensen and Ilkay Gundogan may join Fermin Lopez in forced midfield. Meanwhile Ferran Torres, Alejandro Balde, and Marcos Alonso are still absent. Raphinha's presence is also doubtful due to an ankle problem, but Ronald Araujo will return after undergoing a ban on play.

16-year-old Lamine Yamal is the youngest player to appear in the knockout round of the Champions League, and now she will try to become the youngest goalscorer in the history of the competition. Meanwhile, Robert Lewandowski, who is twice as older than the Napoli star, will lead the front line for Barcelona, after earning 18 goal engagements from his last 12 appearances.

Meanwhile at Napoli, Victor Osimhen's equalizer goal against Barcelona in the 1st leg was his 9th goal in the Champions League. If he scores one more goal it will make him the most productive Nigerian player in the competition, surpassing Obafemi Martins. Napoli's top scorer last season had to lead the front trident which also involved Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Matteo Politano.

Jens Cajuste and Cyril Ngonge may be absent due to a thigh injury, while centre-back Amir Rrahmani also left the field with similar problems against Juventus. But Leo Ostigard is ready to replace his position if necessary.

In midfield Napoli, Piotr Zielinski had to be replaced, as he was not registered for this phase after refusing to sign a new contract - the Polish international is expected to join Inter Milan this summer.

Meeting Notes

Previous meeting: 7

Barcelona's victory: 4

Draw: 3

Napoli's victory: 0

Previous Meetings:

21 February 2024: Napoli 1-1 Barcelona (Babak 16 Besar League Champions)

24 Feb 2022: Napoli 2-4 Barcelona (Playoff Europa League Qualification)

17 Feb 2022: Barcelona 1-1 Napoli (Type League Qualification Layoff)

08 Ags 2020: Barcelona 3-1 Napoli (Babak 16 Besar League Champions)

25 Feb 2020: Napoli 1-1 Barcelona (Babak 16 Besar League Champions)

10 Ags 2019: Barcelona 4-0 Napoli (friendly)

07 Ags 2019: Napoli 1-2 Barcelona (friendly)

Champions League Meeting:

21 February 2024: Napoli 1-1 Barcelona (Babak 16 Besar League Champions)

Player Forecast:

Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Kounde, Araujo, Martinez, Cancelo; Gundogan, Christensen, Lopez; Yamal, Lewandowski, Felix

Napoli: Meret; Di Lorenzo, Ostigard, Jesus, Olivera; Anguissa, Lobotka, Traore; Politano, Osimhen,