Champions League Soccer: Salzburg at Napoli

By BetOnline November 5, 2019

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By the end of the day on Tuesday, the two teams to advance from Group E into the Champions League knockout rounds could be all but settled. Liverpool will host Belgian side Genk at Anfield–a win by the current Premier League leaders would all but guarantee a spot in the Final 16. In Italy, Serie A entrant Napoli can put themselves in a similar position with a win over current Austrian Bundesliga leaders Red Bull Salzburg, referred to sans sponsor during European play and known simply as Salzburg.

Salzburg has yet to lose in this season’s competition in their national league and they’ve put up some extremely dominant numbers. They are 11-2-0 on the year scoring 53 and conceding only 12 for a +41 goal differential. Their away play in the Austrian Bundesliga has been exceptional with a 4-2-0 record 19 goals scored and only 4 conceded. Unfortunately, they’ve not been quite as fortunate in Champions League competition this year. They opened the group stage with a rousing 6-2 win over Genk at home. They then traveled to Anfield and after spotting Liverpool a 3-0 lead managed to tie the contest 3-3 before eventually losing by a 4-3 margin. In their last time out, they played well at home against Napoli but a goal in the 73rd minute gave the Serie A side a 3-2 away victory.

Salzburg played as well as possible but only have 3 points to show for it. Sometimes luck is just as important as skill. Unfortunately, in this group stage the good fortune has gone to their adversaries. A defeat here will all but spell the end of their Champions League knockout round ambitions. They’ve not played well away from home in European competition losing their last three away games dating back to a loss to Naples in Europa League play last year. Napoli has been streaky at times but they have won 8 of their last 12 at home in European Competition. With Napoli struggling in Serie A play at the moment–they’re down to 7th on the table–they may put more of a focus on Champions League competition. They’re 4-2-0 in their last six in all competitions and should take care of business on Tuesday