Barcelona’s Champions League last-16 second leg tie at home to Napoli will be their most important game of the season, manager Xavi Hernandez said on Monday.
The first leg was 1-1 and Barca on Tuesday have a chance to reach the quarter-finals for the first time since 2020 after failing to get past the group stage in the past two seasons.
The last time they won a Champions League knockout game was in a 3-1 home win over Napoli in 2020. With the club third in LaLiga, eight points behind leaders Real Madrid, Europe is now the priority.
“The most important game of the season? Yes, it is, and we’re ready, we’re excited,” Xavi told a press conference.
“It’s been four years since we’ve been in the quarter-finals and that’s how we see it, we want to compete against an opponent who, although they are not going through the best moment, have the base of the (2023) Scudetto champion.”
Barca’s title defence looks likely to end in failure, while Napoli’s is already over, with the Serie A champions seventh in the standings and 31 points adrift of leaders Inter Milan.
via Reuters
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