Fresh from beating Werder 2-0 at home on Saturday to bounce to winning ways, Eintracht Frankfurt will host Serie A’s inform league leaders Napoli on Tuesday in the first leg of their round-of-16 tie at Deutsche Bank Park with kickoff slated for 20:00 GMT.
Napoli will look to transfer their fine domestic form into Europe as they fight on two fronts in the season’s latter stages.
On the other hand, Eintracht will be looking to regain consistency in their performances to stand a chance against Napoli’s all-conquering form.
Key Highlights
Eintracht Frankfurt’s Inconsistency
Oliver Glasner and his men have endured an inconsistent season so far, which sees them mired down in 6th in the Bundesliga, two points behind fourth-placed SC Freiburg.
Ahead of the clash with Napoli, Glasner will drill it into his charges that they will need to be at their best against Napoli to stand a chance of taking anything from this match. His men cannot afford to have an off-day against the Italians, especially playing at home, ahead of traveling to Naples for the return leg.
Glasner will also look to build on their encouraging home win against Werder last Saturday as they bid to build some momentum heading to Tuesday’s clash.
Napoli’s Fine Form
Napoli continued with their fine form with an impressive 0-2 away to Sassuolo on Saturday. This latest triumph continued their impressive run of results that have seen them consolidate their position at the top of Serie A.
Luciano Spalletti and his men have won all their last five assignments in Serie A as they have opened a 15-point lead at the top of the league in their relentless pursuit of the Scudetto.
With clean sheets in their last three outings in all competitions, Luciano Spalletti will be hoping that his side can remain solid at the back away to Eintracht on Tuesday, even as they retain their attacking penetration and precision.
Injury Report
Eintracht Frankfurt
Oliver Glasner will have two injury worries ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League return. Nacho Ferri is a doubt with an unknown injury; the 18-year-old center-forward has been out since January 18th. 2023.
Eintracht will also miss the services of right midfielder Junior Dina Ebimbe who is nursing a syndesmotic ligament tear.
Napoli
The only injury worry for Luciano Spalletti is that of second striker Giacomo Raspadori. The 23-year-old forward has been nursing a hamstring injury since February 14th, 2023. Estimations from the medical team in Naples show that Raspadori is expected to be back fit by March 16th, 2023.
Otherwise, the gaffer of Serie A’s pace setters will have the full complement of his squad ahead of their travel to Frankfurt on Tuesday.
Possible Lineups
Eintracht Frankfurt
K. Trapp; Tuta, K. Jakic, E. Ndicka; A. Knauff, D. Kamada, D. Sow, P. Max; J. Lindstrom, M. Gotze; R. Kolo Muani
Napoli
A. Meret; M. Olivera, M. KIM, A. Rahmani, G. Di Lorenzo; E. Elmas, S. Lobotka, A. Anguissa; K. Kvaratskhelia, V. Osimhen, M. Politano
Prediction
Eintracht Frankfurt will need to strike a balance between their attacking instinct and the need to adopt a robust shape to contain the Napoli press and attack. As a result, Glasner will have to play with a medium press to close down spaces.
Napoli will play in their full-throttle approach with attacking intent and dominating possession. They will use their crisp one-touch passing to penetrate midfielder and/or wide areas to create chances up front. Defensively, they will do it on the front foot through high-energy pressing and counter-pressing to win back the ball.
Napoli will continue their good form with a win to take a major step toward the quarter-finals.
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