Manchester City vs Napoli – Match Preview and Team News | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Champions League campaign begins on Thursday with an emotionally charged encounter against Napoli, which sees the return of club legend Kevin De Bruyne to the Etihad Stadium.

The Belgian playmaker faces his former side for the first time since his summer departure after a decade of success.

The match pits a resurgent City, fresh from a dominant derby victory, against an in-form Napoli side that sits top of Serie A with a perfect record under Antonio Conte.

Manchester City vs Napoli – Match Preview and Team News

Team News

Manchester City

Pep Guardiola is without several players, including Omar Marmoush, Rayan Cherki, and Mateo Kovacic, while defender John Stones is a doubt. Striker Erling Haaland will lead the attack as he looks to score his 50th Champions League goal.

Napoli

The visitors have a major doubt over goalkeeper Alex Meret, which could see Vanja Milinković-Savić continue in his place. Romelu Lukaku and Amir Rrahmani are both unavailable. The focus will be on the returning De Bruyne, who is joined by fellow former Premier League players Scott McTominay and Rasmus Højlund.

Form

Manchester City

City’s commanding 3-0 victory over Manchester United at the weekend was the perfect response to a stuttering start to their season. That performance restored confidence after two consecutive league defeats. However, they will be keen to improve on their recent European form, having lost five of their previous seven Champions League games.

Napoli

Antonio Conte’s side have had a perfect start to the season, winning all three of their Serie A matches to sit top of the table. Their domestic form has been impressive. However, they face a major historical hurdle in this fixture, as they have never won an away match against an English side in 12 European encounters.

Predicted Lineups

Manchester City predicted XI: Donnarumma; Lewis, Dias, Gvardiol, Aké; Rodri, Reijnders; Silva, Foden, Doku; Haaland.

Napoli predicted XI: Milinković-Savić; Di Lorenzo, Buongiorno, Beukema, Spinazzola; Lobotka; Politano, Anguissa, De Bruyne, McTominay; Højlund.

How to watch Manchester City vs Napoli?

The match will be broadcast live on TNT Sports 2 in the UK, with coverage beginning at 7:30 pm BST.

Read- The five favourites to win the 2025/26 Champions League

See more- Champions League: Five youngsters to look out for this season

Subscribe to our social channels:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube