Napoli vs. Chelsea: Preview, Predictions and Lineups

It’s a must-win game for both Napoli and Chelsea, who meet on the final day of the Champions League league phase with different aspirations.

While Napoli are merely aiming to extend their continental campaign by finishing inside the top 24—enough for a playoff spot—Chelsea are currently in position to qualify automatically for the round of 16.

This fixture bears great historical significance for the away side, who last visited the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona during their miraculous Champions League-winning campaign of 2011–12. A 3–1 deficit was overturned after extra time at Stamford Bridge on what was one of the most memorable nights in the club’s European history.

Napoli, then led by Walter Mazzarri, have struggled to assert themselves on the big stage over the past decade despite a couple of Scudetto triumphs, and their woes have, perhaps unsurprisingly, continued under former Chelsea boss Antonio Conte this season.

Their 1–1 draw with Copenhagen last week leaves them in 25th and outside of the playoffs. Liam Rosenior’s Blues, meanwhile, are eighth and will surely advance into the round of 16 with a win in Southern Italy.

What Time Does Napoli vs. Chelsea Kick Off?

Location: Naples, England
Stadium: Stadio Diego Armando Maradona
Date: Wednesday, Jan. 28
Kick-off Time: 8 p.m. GMT / 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT
Referee: Clément Turpin (FRA)
VAR: Jérôme Brisard (FRA)

Napoli vs. Chelsea Head-to-Head Record (All Games)

Napoli: 1 win
Chelsea: 1 win
Draws: 0

Last meeting: Chelsea 4–1 Napoli (Mar. 14, 2012)—Champions League

Current Form (All Competitions)

Napoli (LDWDD)	Chelsea (WWWDW)
Juventus 3–0 Napoli	Crystal Palace 1–3 Chelsea
Copenhagen 1–1 Napoli	Chelsea 1–0 Pafos
Napoli 1–0 Sassuolo	Chelsea 2–0 Brentford
Napoli 0–0 Parma	Chelsea 2–3 Arsenal
Napoli 2–2 Inter	Charlton 1–5 Chelsea

How to Watch Napoli vs. Chelsea on TV, Live Stream

Country	TV channel/live stream
United Kingdom	TNT Sports 4, discovery+, discovery+ App
United States	Paramount+
Canada	DAZN Canada, fuboTV Canada
Mexico	Max Mexico, Space Mexico

MORE: Full list of Champions League broadcasters around the world

Napoli Team News

Napoli are down to their bare bones. While Conte has recently welcomed Romelu Lukaku back from a long-term injury, Wednesday’s hosts have a long list of absences.

Among those missing include Kevin De Bruyne and Billy Gilmour, both once of west London. David Neres and Vanja Milinković-Savić are two fresh concerns for Conte, with the former, who’d enjoyed a resurgent campaign, ruled out for the foreseeable after undergoing surgery.

Matteo Politano, Amir Rrahmani and André-Frank Zambo Anguissa are also missing for the home side in this must-win clash.

Napoli Predicted Lineup vs. Chelsea

Napoli predicted lineup vs. Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Meret; Di Lorezno, Buongiorno, Juan; Gutierrez, Lobotka, McTominay, Oliveira; Spinazzola, Elmas; Højlund.

Chelsea Team News

Cole Palmer has been dealing with a nagging groin injury all season, but the England international missed Chelsea’s previous two games due to an unrelated thigh issue. However, he has trained ahead of Wednesday’s all-important clash and should travel to Naples.

Whether Rosenior opts to bring him back into his starting XI is another matter, especially after his side impressed at Selhurst Park on Sunday.

The Blues are also without Dário Essugo, Tosin Adarabioyo, Levi Colwill and Roméo Lavia on Wednesday night. Reserve goalkeeper Filip Jørgensen is a doubt due to a knock.

Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs. Napoli

Chelsea predicted lineup vs. Napoli (4-2-3-1): Sánchez; James, Fofana, Chalobah, Cucurella; Caicedo, Santos; Estêvão, Fernández, Garnacho; Pedro.

Napoli vs. Chelsea Score Prediction

Sunday’s win at Crystal Palace was the most convincing performance of Rosenior’s reign so far, and the Chelsea boss will garner plenty of plaudits among the Blues fanbase if he gets one over a pair of former west London villains in Conte and Lukaku.

Napoli are mightily depleted and running on fumes. They’re going to have to extract something from nowhere to get the victory they need, with Scott McTominay likely needing to produce the goods again.

Chelsea should be favoured, but the Italian champions are gritty and they could fight their way to an albeit inconsequential point. That’d eliminate Conte’s side and further damage the Italian’s Champions League legacy, but at least he’d have scuppered the Blues round of 16 hopes.