Wednesday’s action will feature some of the most exciting matchups of the season as Antonio Conte’s Napoli will host Chelsea at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. While the team now managed by Liam Rosenior are still fighting for a spot in the top eight, the Serie A champions are seriously at risk of being eliminated from the European tournament after a disappointing campaign. The Azzurri won two games, drew two and lost three matches in the opening seven matches of the league phase, including a disappointing 6-2 defeat against PSV. Napoli’s chances to qualify are still up to them, as Conte’s team will need to win against Chelsea, while a draw might not be enough and they will have to wait and hope for other results. Here’s what you need to know ahead of the match against Chelsea that will take place on Wednesday:
Viewing information
- Date: Wednesday, Jan. 28 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
- Location: Stadio Diego Armando Maradona — Naples
- Live stream: Paramount+
- Odds: Napoli +209; Draw +250; Chelsea +124
How can Napoli qualify?
Napoli still have a chance to qualify for the playoffs of the 2025-26 Champions League but need to win against Chelsea to make that happens. Napoli have a minus-five goal difference entering the last match of the league phase which is not ideal considering the rivals and only a win over Chelsea can guarantee them playing in the next phase. In case of a draw or a defeat and if teams are level on points following the end of the league phase, this is how tiebreakers will be applied:
- Overall goal difference
- Goals scored in all league matches
- Away goals scored in all league matches
- Total wins
- Away wins
- Strength of schedule, includes points, goal difference and goals scored of all opponents faced in league phase
- Fewer disciplinary points, one point for a yellow card, three points for a red card, and three points for two yellow cards
- Higher overall ranking in the UEFA Club Coefficient
Will Conte leave Napoli if they fail?
Napoli are not facing their best moment as Conte’s team is deeply affected by injuries and saw some changes in the roster during the current winter transfer window. Summer signings Lorenzo Lucca and Noa Lang left the roster after a disappointing start of the season and Napoli signed Giovane from Hellas Verona this winter, showing the disappointment of the Italian manager on the summer moves. With many injuries affecting the roster, such as key players David Neres, Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, Matteo Politano and Kevin de Bruyne, who will all miss Chelsea’s game, Conte is facing a difficult moment after losing 3-0 over the weekend against Juventus away. In case of a Champions League elimination, the future of Conte won’t be in doubt but many things can change from today to the end of the season when the Italian coach will decide again on his future and the current performances might affect his decisions in the coming months, as he has already showed during his career.
Possible lineups
Napoli XI: Vanja Milinkovic-Savic; Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Alessandro Buongiorno, Juan Jesus, Miguel Gutierrez; Stanislav Lobotka, Scott McTominay, Leonardo Spinazzola, Antonio Vergara; Eljif Elmas, Rasmus Hoejlund.
Chelsea XI: Filip Joergensen; Malo Gusto, Wesley Fofana, Benoit Badiashile, Jorrel Hato; Reece James, Moises Caicedo; Pedro Neto, Enzo Fernandez, Alejandro Garnacho; Liam Delap.
Prediction
It will be a challenging one for Napoli but they need to win in order to avoid a likely elimination from the tournament. Pick: Napoli 2, Chelsea 2.
How to watch
All of the action on Matchday 8 of the UEFA Champions League can be caught on Paramount+, while CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network will have select simultaneous coverage. Each day’s coverage begins with Champions League Matchday, streaming on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Golazo Network ahead of the early games before the UEFA Champions League Today pre-match show begins on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network. The Golazo Show on Paramount+ also returns for the late slate of matches, while the UEFA Champions League Today post-match show on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network picks things up at the end of the day. The day’s coverage concludes on CBS Sports Golazo Network with The Champions Club (also streamed live on YouTube) and Scoreline.
Champions League Power Rankings: Arsenal, Bayern Munich, PSG unchanged at top with one league phase day left
Francesco Porzio
Full Champions League standings
| Pos | Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 2 | +18 | 21 |
| 2 | Bayern Munich | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 7 | +13 | 18 |
| 3 | Real Madrid | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 19 | 8 | +11 | 15 |
| 4 | Liverpool | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 8 | +6 | 15 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 15 | 7 | +8 | 14 |
| 6 | PSG | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 20 | 10 | +10 | 13 |
| 7 | Newcastle United | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 6 | +10 | 13 |
| 8 | Chelsea | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 8 | +6 | 13 |
| 9 | Barcelona | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 13 | +5 | 13 |
| 10 | Sporting CP | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 14 | 9 | +5 | 13 |
| 11 | Manchester City | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 9 | +4 | 13 |
| 12 | Atletico Madrid | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 13 | +3 | 13 |
| 13 | Atalanta | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 9 | +1 | 13 |
| 14 | Inter | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 7 | +6 | 12 |
| 15 | Juventus | 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 10 | +4 | 12 |
| 16 | Borussia Dortmund | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 15 | +4 | 11 |
| 17 | Galatasaray | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 10 |
| 18 | Qarabag | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 13 | 15 | -2 | 10 |
| 19 | Olympique Marseille | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 9 |
| 20 | Bayer Leverkusen | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 14 | -4 | 9 |
| 21 | Monaco | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 14 | -6 | 9 |
| 22 | PSV | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 14 | +1 | 8 |
| 23 | Athletic Club | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 11 | -4 | 8 |
| 24 | Olympiacos | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 13 | -5 | 8 |
| 25 | Napoli | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 12 | -5 | 8 |
| 26 | FC Copenhagen | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 17 | -6 | 8 |
| 27 | Club Brugge | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 17 | -5 | 7 |
| 28 | Bodo/Glimt | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 14 | -2 | 6 |
| 29 | Benfica | 7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 10 | -4 | 6 |
| 30 | Pafos | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 10 | -6 | 6 |
| 31 | Union Saint-Gilloise | 7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 17 | -10 | 6 |
| 32 | Ajax | 7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 19 | -12 | 6 |
| 33 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 19 | -9 | 4 |
| 34 | Slavia Prague | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 15 | -11 | 3 |
| 35 | Villarreal | 7 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 15 | -10 | 1 |
| 36 | Kairat | 7 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 19 | -14 | 1 |
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