The Blues completed one of our most famous Champions League comebacks against the side from Naples in the last-16 in 2012, overturning a 3-1 first-leg deficit to advance 5-4 on aggregate. It lit the touchpaper for our maiden conquest of Europe’s premier competition.

The Blues will be back in Naples on Wednesday 28 January, and here we profile Antonio Conte’s side and the club’s history…

Factfile

Full name: Societa Sportiva Calcio Napoli
Country: Italy
City: Naples
Formation: 1926
Major honours: Four Serie A titles (1987, 1990, 2023, 2025), six Coppa Italia wins (most recently 2020), one UEFA Cup (1989)
Head coach: Antonio Conte
2024/25 league finish: 1st
Stadium: Stadio Diego Armando Maradona

Colours: Blue and white
Nickname:Gli Azzurri (The Blues)
Rivals: Juventus, Roma

Champions League history

Napoli first competed in the European Cup in 1987, after their maiden Serie A triumph. Their first Champions League entry was in 2011/12, when we knocked them out in the round of 16. They have reached that stage again on three further occasions, and made the quarter-finals in 2022/23, beaten 2-1 on aggregate by AC Milan.

2024/25 season

Napoli jostled it out with Inter at the top of Serie A for the entire season, eventually pipping them to the post with victory over Cagliari on the final day. A last-minute penalty by former Blue Pedro for Lazio against Inter on the penultimate weekend handed Napoli the advantage, and it was one they did not let slip.

It was Lazio who knocked Napoli out of the Coppa Italia in the round of 16, while they did not compete in European competition after a 10th-place finish in 2023/24. Romelu Lukaku was their top scorer with 14 goals in all competitions.

2025/26 season so far…

Napoli have started the new season with two wins from two, beating Sassuolo 2-0 away from home, and then earning a 1-0 victory over Cagliari courtesy of a 95th-minute Frank Anguissa goal.

Current squad

There are three former Chelsea players in a Napoli squad managed by Conte - Lukaku, Billy Gilmour and new signing Kevin De Bruyne.

Rasmus Hojlund joined on loan from Manchester United on deadline day, with former Red Devil Scott McTominay making himself a cult hero last season with several vital goals. Italy international Giovanni Di Lorenzo is the Napoli captain.

Notable former players

Nobody more famous than Diego Maradona, after whom Napoli renamed their stadium in 2020 following the Argentinean’s death. Maradona played alongside Gianfranco Zola at Napoli, and the Chelsea great attributed much of his free-kick majesty to the work he did with El Pibe de Oro.

We signed Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli in 2022, while other modern era greats include Marek Hamsik, record goalscorer Dries Mertens, Edinson Cavani and Lorenzo Insigne.

Previous Champions League meetings

2011/12 round of 16

Napoli 3-1 Chelsea
Chelsea 4-1 Napoli aet (Chelsea win 5-4 on aggregate)