Jurgen Klopp speaks: He’s in very animated form as he chats with BT Sport’s Des Kelly. “Yeah of course, it should hurt,” he says, upon asked if he’s fed up by the defeat. “There were opportunities to win this and it was much better than in the last game [against Napoli in this stadium last season] when we lost in the last minute.”
Asked about the concession of the goals, he seems fairly matter-of-fact. “We started controlling a wild game in the second half and then we conceded a penalty,” he says. “I saw it again and it’s clear and obvious to me that Callejon jumped before he was touched. But there’s nothing we can do about that.”
He goes on to say that “we had not enough chances at the end, to be perfectly honest” and bemoaned his team’s uncharacteristically poor decision-making in the final third. “We made these decisions that were not right tonight and that was what led to the result,” he said. “It was often the final ball that was not right, but it’s difficult because of the intensity of the game. There were moments when we should have done better, for sure.”
Match report: Napoli 2-0 Liverpool
Andy Hunter was in the Stadio San Paolo for the Guardian and here’s the piping hot take on Liverpool’s defeat that he filed on the final whistle.
Elsewhere in Group E: Austrian side RB Salzburg have thrashed Belgian outfit Genk by a tennis score: 6-2, with Erling Haaland bagging himself a first-half hat-trick.
Full-time: Napoli 2-0 Liverpool
Peep! Peep! Peeeeeep! It’s all over and Napoli have won. They’ve beaten a Liverpool side that has now lost four successive group stage matches away from home. Errors cost them. The first came from Andy Robertson, who I think can consider himself rather hard done by in giving away a penalty, but did unnecessarily give the ref a decision to make. Closer to the death, Virgil van Dijk cost his side with an uncharacteristically rogue pass.
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90+3 min: The Stadio San Paolo is a riot of colour and noise as the home fans celebrate their team’s late triumph. Big Virgil was at fault for that one, I’m afraid, ruining an otherwise flawless display with a wayward pass across his own area to Joel Matip that Fernando Llorente did well to anticipate and pounce upon. The Spanish striker could scarcely have been more alert and stuck the ball under Adrian to upon his Napoli account.
GOAL! Napoli 2-0 Liverpool (Llorente 90+2)
Napoli double their lead. Fernando Llorente scores his first goal for Napoli on only his second appearance, pouncing to scuff the ball home after a mix-up in the Liverpool defence. The guilty party? Your friend and mine, Mr Virgil van Dijk.
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90+1 min: We’re into the first of five added minutes.
89 min: With his side ahead very much against the run of recent play, Mertens picks out Callejon with a wonderful cross-field ball and his cross from the right is just a mite too high for Llorente.
86 min: Manolas heads a Trent Alexander-Arnold cross just wide of his own goal. Liverpool substitution: Xherdan Shaqiri on for Jordan Henderson.
84 min: VAR?!?!?!? VARce more like. Replays show that Andy Robertson quite clearly and obviously didn’t foul Callejon ... but didn’t foul him quite clearly and obviously enough for the referee’s decision to be overturned by VAR. Expect much comical mouth-foaming, along with the usual cries of conspiracy from Liverpool Twitter tonight.
GOAL! Napoli 1-0 Liverpool (Mertens 82pen)
Napoli lead! Dries Mertens scores into the bottom right-hand corner, despite Adrian getting a hand to the ball.
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The penalty stands!
Despite the fact that Robertson didn’t seem to foul Callejon, the lads in the VAR room haven’t seen fit to view the decision as a clear and obvious error. Napoli get their spot-kick.
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Penalty for Napoli!!!
Andrew Robertson brings down Callejon with a leg that’s hanging in the wind, but it’s going to VAR.
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78 min: Kostas Manolas does well to prevent Sadio Mane reaching a cross from the right on the stretch and poking it goalwards.
77 min: Liverpool are definitely dominating the game at the moment, but have yet to convert their superiority into the cold, hard currency of goals. Napoli have noticeably gone to pieces since making their substitutions.
75 min: Final Napoli substitution: Allan hobbles off, still suffering from cramp. He’s replaced by Macedonia international Eljif Elmas, who comes on for his Champions League debut.
74 min: From about 12 yards out, Sadio Mane shoots low and hard after having the ball put into his path by Bobby Firmino. Alex Meret gets down quickly to save.
72 min: There’s a break in play as Napoli midfielder goes down with cramp. He gets assistance from a team-mate, who helps him stretch his calves.
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70 min: Into the final 20 minutes we go, with the deadlock unbroken. Following his mistake a few moments ago that almost let Mo Salah in to score, Napoli centre-back Kostas Manolas looks a bag of nerves at the moment.
68 min: Napoli substitution: Fernando Llorente on, Hirving Lozano off.
66 min: Liverpool substitution: Gini Wijnaldum on for James Milner. Napoli substitution: Piotr Zielinski on for Lorenzo Insigne.
65 min: Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret saves brilliantly by getting a fingertip to a low, diagonal Mo Salah shot after the Egyptian had pounced on a comically sliced clearance from Manolas that went behind the central defender.
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64 min: Dries Mertens tries a shot from distance, but it’s blocked by James Milner.
One of the finest saves you’ll see from Adrian: pic.twitter.com/SoMJC9Qedc
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) September 17, 2019
61 min: James Milner gets booked for his second foul in quick succession, a late lunge on Callejon in this case.
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60 min: Hirving Lozano sprints into the right side of the Liverpool penalty area and tries to square the ball, but Big Virgil is having none of it and blocks.
58 min: Napoli win a free-kick wide on the right for a Fabinho foul that’s flagged up by the linesman. From the set piece, Callejon’s cross sails into the arms of Adrian.
57 min: Andy Robertson is booked for pulling on the arm of Callejon and breaking up a Napoli attack. The Scot protests his innocence, but can’t really have any complaints.
54 min: Napoli appeal for a penalty after an Insigne cross hits Trent Alexander-Arnold’s arm. No spot-kick is forthcoming as the Liverpool full-back’s arm was right by his side.
From the ensuing corner, Liverpool counter-attack and have a two-on-one, but an excellent goal chance goes begging when Sadio Mane makes a dog’s breakfast of what should have been the decisive pass to Mo Salah. Liverpool should have scored there.
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53 min: More excellent defending on a night where both back fours have been outstanding. This time Van Dijk calmly gets across to intercept a squared ball from Jose Callejon, who’d been picked out in the Liverpool penalty area by Dries Mertens.
That is an unbelievable save from Adrian. Kept his focus on the ball and managed to react mid-dive. Class.
— David Preece (@davidpreece12) September 17, 2019
49 min: Dries Mertens is denied by an excellent save from Adrian, after Virgil van Dijk had been beaten by the flight of a Fabian Ruiz dink from the left. Mertens leapt to volley home at the far post, but Adrian saved brilliantly with a strong right hand that pushed the ball over the bar.
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48 min: Lozano tries to pick out Fabian Luiz on the left touchline, but Trent Alexander-Arnold intercepts.
47 min: There’s a break in play as Hirving Lozano receives medical treatment, specifically the entire contents of a can of painkilling spray on his lower back. He’ll live.
46 min: Roberto Firmino tries to steer a pass into the path of Mane in the Napoli penalty area, but his cross-hairs are not aligned correctly and Giovanni Di Lorenzo cuts out the danger by hacking clear.
Second half: Napoli 0-0 Liverpool
46 min: Napoli get the ball rolling, with no changes of personnel on either side.
Elsewhere in Group E: Austrian side RB Salzburg are piling the hurt on their Belgian opponents Genk, who they lead 5-1 at half-time. Their Leeds born Norwegian striker Erling Haaland, 19-year-old son of Roy Keane’s good pal Alfie Inge Haaland, has scored a hat-trick.
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Half-time: Napoli 0-0 Liverpool
A goalless but very entertaining first half, punctuated by very few interventions from the referee draws to a close. Roberto Firmino had the pick of Liverpool’s few chances, while Fabian Ruiz came closest to putting the home side ahead.
44 min: The corner is taken short and Milner sends a cross towards the far post. From a good distance out, Roberto Firmino gets a free header which flashes wide of the upright. Alex Meret was caught completely flat-footed in goal for Napoli - it Firminho had got his header on target Liverpool would be ahead.
43 min: Liverpool attack on the break, with James Milner on the ball. He tries to curl a low ball towards Sadio Mane up in support and haring into the penalty area. Ruiz is back to cut out the cross and concede a corner from which Liverpool nearly score.
42 min: Napoli corner. Mertens sends the ball into the mixer, where Van Dijk heads clear for Liverpool. Mario Ruiz sends the ball back into the penalty area, where it’s headed clear again.
41 min: Koulibaly concedes a free-kick in the channel between the Napoli penalty area and the left touchline after catching Sadio Mane with a stray arm. Nothing comes of it.
40 min: Fabian Ruiz sends a teasing cross into the Liverpool penalty area, where Virgil van Dijk does just enough to prevent Hirving Lozano sliding in and poking it goalwards.
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37 min: On Monday’s Football Weekly podcast (available free in all the usual pod places) I said that Liverpool’s front three are practically impossible to defend against, but Napoli are doing a very good job of keeping them at bay tonight. The Italian side’s goalkeeper, Alex Meret, has only had one save to make so far and must be mightily reassured by the sight of the two-man portcullis that is Kalidou Koulibaly and Kostas Manolas in front of him.
35 min: Liverpool go forward after a sustained spell of possession from Napoli, but once again the Italian side’s defending is stout and they fail to make much ground.
33 min: Insigne gets the ball caught under his feet under pressure from Alexander-arnold in the Liverpool penalty area. With a better first touch he might have fashioned an excellent scoring chance in that position.
32 min: After just over half an hour, its scoreless but excellent fun and I have Napoli winning very narrowly on points.
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31 min: The ball finds its way to the feet of Mertens on the edge of the Liverpool penalty area, but Sadio Mane gets in his way before he can pull the trigger.
29 min: Hirving Lozano tries to pick out Mertens with a cross from the inside left, but his delivery is blocked and loops up into the air and into the warm embrace of Liverpool goalkeeper Adrian. Some very promising attacking play from both sides is being thwarted by some outstanding defending from both sides.
28 min: Dries Mertens fouls Trent Alexander-Arnold as the pair of them sprint after a loose ball in the Liverpool penalty area.
26 min: Good defending from Joel Matip, who stoops to head the ball behind for a corner, after Dries Mertens had whipped in a cross and Lozano was waiting to pounce from six or seven yards out. Nothing comes from the set piece.
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24 min: Virgil van Dijk gets across to dispossess Dries Mertens, who’d been put into space by a pass from deep in behind Andy Robertson. Corner for Napoli, which Van Dijk clears.
22 min: Mo Salah drives into the Napoli penalty area and gets goal side of Koulibaly, who resists the temptation to bring the Egyptian down. Running down a blind alley, Salah picks out James Milner on the edge of the area and the midfielder shoots high over the bar.
20 min: Napoli are piling forward at every opportunity, giving Liverpool plenty of opportunities to attack on the break. The first quarter of this game is being quite some lick and Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret is pressed into action for the first time, getting down to save a Sadio Mane shot from a tight angle at his near post.
16 min: At the other end, Virgil van Dijk is on hand to block an attempted cross to Hirving Lozano from Insigne on the left wing. Moments previously, Liverpool were forced to clear their lines as Ruiz squared the ball into their penalty area with Mertens lurking. Van Dijk it was, who cleared.
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15 min: A rock in the heart of Napoli’s defence, Koulibaly steps up again, this time to block an attempted cross by Trent Alexander-Arnold.
14 min: Napoli win a throw-in deep in Liverpool territory, then another. Now they win a corner, as Milner puts the ball out of play rather than let Giovanni Di Lorenzo get past him on the byline. Nothing comes of it.
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13 min: Another good tackle from Koulibaly, who gets back to dispossess Mo Salah as he tried to jink past the defender after being played into the Napoli penalty area by Fabinho.
12 min: Kalidou Koulibaly dives in to dispossess Roberto Firmino with a perfectly timed tackle in the Napoli penalty area and earns himself a loud roar of approval from the home fans.
10 min: Lorenzo Insigne runs on to an excellent pass from deep into the penalty area by Allan, but Trent Alexander-Arnold reads his intention and is first to the ball.
8 min: Chance! Chance! Chance! Fabian Ruiz shoots twice in quick succession from about 15 yards out, his second effort a follow-up saved by Adrian after the goalkeeper had parried his first back into the midfielder’s path. Lozano nods home the second rebound but is correctly flagged for offside. That’s a fairly impressive double-save from Adrian, who is making his Champions League debut in goal for Liverpool.
6 min: Dreis Mertens tries to pick out Hirving Solano with a curling cross from the right, but Joel Matip heads clear.
5 min: Liverpool break down the field on a counter-attack, which breaks down when Salah is unable to pick out Sadio Mane with a pass. Allan, one of Napoli’s central midfielders, intercepts with a crucial block.
3 min: Liverpool win a corner after good work down the right from Mo Salah. As the ball sails into the penalty area, Kostas Manolas catches Roberto Firmino with an elbow and the Brazilian goes to ground but the referee blows for an offside. That looked like it should have been a penalty to me, but the VAR officials don’t appear to agree.
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2 min: The fans are a long way from the pitch in Napoli’s throwback of a stadium, which didn’t have functional dressing-rooms this time last week due to renovations that didn’t finish on time. They are, however, making plenty of noise.
Napoli v Liverpool is go!
1 min: There’s a slight delay as referee Felix Brych appears to deal with some technical issue with his ear-piece before play gets under way.
Not long now: The teams line up in the tunnel and make their way out on to the pitch led by referee Felix Brych and his team of match officials. Napoli’s players wear light blue shirts, white shorts and light blue socks. Liverpool’s players wear red shirts, shorts and socks.
Jurgen Klopp speaks: “The game plan?” he says to BT Sport’s dishy, debonair pitchside reporter Des Kelly. “The opponents line-up is very offensive. It will be tricky, it will be lively ... it will have to be very intense. We’ll have to be brave with the ball and first of all defend them. We have to adapt in the game, but the best way is if we have the ball and pass it around.”
Trouble in Naples ...
The Liverpool Echo report that a number of Liverpool fans were attacked in Naples this evening. Some had bottles thrown at them by home fans, while others were surrounded by men on mopeds and whipped with belts.
“We were just trying to have a quiet drink before going to the apartment and had just paid our bar bill,” one supporter, who did not wish to be named, told the Echo.
“Next minute we could see about 10 scooters flying down. They slowed right down and their faces were covered with scarves and helmets. Next second they are jumping off swinging belts towards us. Must have all happened in 90 seconds but some lad got hit by a belt. Twice I’ve had bother here now. I am never coming back.”
Merseyside Police have since released a statement. “We can confirm two Liverpool fans were reported to have been assaulted in Naples earlier today” it read. “At around 6pm local time (5pm GMT), it was reported a number of males on scooters approached the fans at a bar in the city before assaulting them.
“Two men from the UK, aged 26 and 46, sustained superficial cuts and grazes to the head and were treated at the scene before continuing to attend the match.
“Local police are aware and Merseyside Police are working with police colleagues in Naples to assist in the policing of the Champions League fixture tonight.”
Napoli v Liverpool line-ups
Napoli: Meret, Allan, Manolas, Koulibaly, Mario Rui, Callejon, Ruiz, Lozano, Mertens, Di Lorenzo Insigne
Subs: Ospina, Llorente, Elmas, Maksimovic, Zielinski, Ghoulam, Milik.
Liverpool: Adrian, Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson, Fabinho, Milner, Henderson, Roberto Firmino, Mane, Salah
Subs: Kelleher, Wijnaldum, Lovren, Gomez, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lallana, Shaqiri.
Referee: Felix Brych (Germany)
Team news: Andy Robertson has been passed fit to play in a Liverpool side that features three changes from the side that started against Newcastle on Saturday. Jordan Henderson and James Milner come into midfield, with Gini Wijnaldum and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain making way. Roberto Firminho comes in for Divock Origi and will make his 200th appearance for the club.
Carlo Ancelotti has picked a very attacking Napoli side, with Jose Callejon, Dries Mertens, Lorenzo Insigne and Hirving Lozano all starting. Defender Kostas Manolas and midfielder Allan are also drafted in as Nikola Maksimovic, Piotr Zielinski and Elif Elmas drop out. Despite fronting up for last night’s press conference, Fernando Llorente starts on the bench, as does Arkadiusz Milik, who can’t seem to decide whether or not he’s fit to play.
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Carlo Ancelotti speaks: “Liverpool have improved because winning the Champions League gives you belief,” said Napoli’s manager. “We have improved too though and we’ve bolstered our squad with the addition of some quality players. I think it will be a great game – hard fought and intense.
“We want to play a starring role, first by reaching the knockout stage and cementing our place as one of Europe’s top clubs. We know how good we are and we want to prove it on the international stage.
“We mustn’t alter the way we play, regardless of the team I pick. Of course you have to keep the opposition in mind and the defensive side is very important but if you want to win matches you have to impose your game by playing to the strengths of your players.”
Jurgen Klopp speaks: “If you go nuts and start taking drugs and drinking and driving different cars or whatever, and leave your missus at home because you are now the Champions League winner then I can’t help you,” he joked, upon being asked if victory in the Champions League last season had gone to his players’ heads.
“We don’t feel the burden of being champions,” said Liverpool’s manager. “It was long ago. Will teams play differently against us? I have no clue. I’ve never won the Champions League before. I hope we are prepared for that.
“We are trying to reach the same level as last year, we want to be consistent, play our football, use or skills and our confidence. We will judge improvement at the end of the season. For now, we just have to do our best.”
Early Napoli team news ...
Left-winger Lorenzo Insigne returned from injury to come off the bench in Napoli’s 2-0 win over Sampdoria at the weekend. Arkadiusz Milik had been expected to be available for selection following a stomach injury, but this match seems to have come a day or two too soon for the striker.
Albanian right-back Elseid Hysaj has been ruled out, while one of Hirving Lozano or Fernando Llorente are likely to start up front alongside Dries Mertens. Llorente sat alongside Carlo Ancelotti at last night’s press conference, in a state of affairs that suggests he might get the nod.
Early Liverpool team news ...
Andy Robertson didn’t train yesterday for precautionary reasons, but Jurgen Klopp said it “is not a major thing” and the Scotsman seems likely to be passed fit. Divock Origi has been ruled out with the ankle injury he suffered against Newcastle on Saturday and did not travel to Italy. Alisson remains unavailable for selection following the calf injury he picked up during Liverpool’s first game of the season, against Norwich City.
Group E: Napoli v Liverpool
Napoli’s San Paolo Stadium is the venue for the beginning of Liverpool’s Champions League title defence, following their victory over Tottenham Hotspur in last season’s final in Atlético Madrid’s Wanda Metropolitano Stadium a little under four months ago.
Liverpool last won consecutive European Cups in the mid-seventies, beginning a period of English dominance in the competition. Nottingham Forest emulated their feat in 1978-79 and 79-80, before Liverpool won their third final at the end of the 1980-81 campaign, before Aston Villa got in on the act in 1981-82.
While both sides playing tonight should pass into the knockout stages with a minimum of fuss, retaining their title this season will be an extremely tall order for Liverpool. Since the European Cup morphed into the bloated, money-spinning behemoth that is the Champions League 27 years ago, only Real Madrid – with their trio of back-to-back-to-back titles earlier this decade – have managed to win more than one in a row.
Kick-off tonight is at 8pm (BST), but stay tuned for team news and build-up in the meantime.
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