Villarreal out to end Champions League losing run when Napoli visit La Cerámica | OneFootball

Villarreal’s 3-2 defeat at Borussia Dortmund extended a club-record Champions League losing streak to seven, with Napoli due at La Cerámica on 13 October offering the next chance to stop it.

El Periódico Mediterráneo notes the display in Germany felt more encouraging than the result, and that the home date is ringed for its difficulty and the push to end a prolonged wait for a continental win.

Íñigo Pérez’s side travelled after finishing their previous Champions campaign with six straight losses, against Manchester City 0-2, Pafos 1-0, Borussia Dortmund 4-0, Copenhagen 2-3, Ajax 1-2 and Bayer Leverkusen 3-0. This week’s reverse made it seven in a row.

That sequence surpasses their prior worst, set in 2011/12 when they lost all six group games, home and away to Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Napoli.

In Dortmund, Renato Veiga put through his own net for the opener, Mouriño levelled with a firm header, then Guirassy struck twice, one from the spot, before a late German own goal closed the gap to 3-2.

The slump stretches beyond the Champions League, with nine European matches without a win. Their last success came in 2024, a 3-1 home victory over Olympique de Marseille in the Europa League last 16. Before this Champions run, they had drawn 2-2 with Juventus in Vila-real and lost 1-0 at Tottenham in London. Napoli’s return to La Cerámica brings a chance to close both sequences.

Source: El Periódico Mediterráneo

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