LIONEL MESSI and Barcelona will look to avoid another dramatic Champions League exit.
The Catalan giants kick off their campaign in the knockout stages against Napoli, as they eye a fifth title since 2006.
Lionel Messi enjoyed the perfect warm-up for the Champions League tie, netting four times against Eibar at the weekendCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Yet, that could have been much more for Barcelona, had it not been for their failure to hold on to first leg leads against Liverpool in the semi-finals last year, and Roma in the quarters back in 2018.
What time does Napoli vs Barcelona kick off?
This Champions League Last 16 first leg will take place on Tuesday, February 25.
It will kick off at 8pm UK time – that is 9pm in Italy and 3pm ET.
The match will be held at Stadio San Paolo in Naples.
The reverse fixture will take place on Wednesday, March 18 at Camp Nou.
What TV channel is it on and can I live stream it for FREE?
Napoli vs Barcelona will be shown live on BT Sport 3, with coverage underway from 7.15pm.
BT Sport subscribers can live stream this match via the app on their computer, mobile and tablet devices.
Alternatively, EE phone customers can watch the action for FREE with a three-month trial on the BT Sport app – just text SPORT to 150.
Meanwhile, US viewers can watch on UniMas, TUDN USA and Univision NOW.
What is the team news?
Barcelona have had to bring in Martin Braithwaite on an emergency signing from Leganes to deal with their striker shortage – but one of the conditions of his arrival is he cannot feature in the Champions League.
Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele are out for the season, while Sergi Roberto is not expected back until next month.
Jordi Alba and Arda Turan will also miss the clash in Italy.
Meanwhile, Napoli are without star defender Kalidou Koulibaly, while Kevin Malcuit is also set to miss the match.
That will likely see Nikola Maksimovic and Kostas Manolas – who scored the goal to knock out Barcelona two years ago – start at the heart of their back line.
Stat attack!
- Napoli have not won a European title since the Uefa Cup in 1989 – when they had ex-Barcelona star Maradona
- The Italians have never got past the Round of 16, while Barcelona last failed to reach the quarter-finals in 2007
- This is the first European Cup meeting between the two sides
What are the odds?
Despite being on the road, Barcelona are favourites to win in Italy at 23/20, while Napoli are 11/5 to beat the Catalan giants.
Lionel Messi will not only want to fire Barca to victory, but also close the gap on Cristiano Ronaldo for all-time Champions League scorer.
The Argentine is 21/20 to score at anytime, while 5/1 to net more than once.
But Napoli’s Belgian ace Dries Mertens needs just two goals to become the club’s all-time leading scorer outright – but is 16/1 to do that in this match.
Odds courtesy of Ladbrokes and correct at time of publication.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
