Match recap: Napoli 4-1 LFC

Champions League Group A Game 1
Wednesday 07 September 2022 - 8:00 pm
Stadio Diego Maradona
Napoli4
1Liverpool
Show Match Events
⚽️ Zielinski5'
9' Milner
18' van Dijk
⚽️ Zambo Anguissa31'
Osimhen off, Simeone on ↔️41'
45'↔️ Gomez off, Matip on
⚽️ Simeone45'
⚽️ Zielinski47'
49'Diaz ⚽️
Kvaratskhelia off, Zerbin on ↔️57'
Politano off, Lozano on ↔️57'
62'↔️ Firmino off, Núñez on
62'↔️ Salah off, Jota on
62'↔️ Milner off, Alcantara on
Rrahmani66'
Zielinski off, Rui on ↔️74'
Olivera off, Elmas on ↔️74'
76'↔️ Elliott off, Melo on
Hide Match Events

Liverpool travel to Napoli in our opening group game of this season's Champions League.

The reds will be hoping to follow the same path as they did in 2019 when they put a Madrid final defeat to good use - heading straight back to the final and being crowned European Champions for a sixth time.

Domestically, the reds have not had the best of starts to the season - collecting just 9 of their opening 18 points.  The midfield remains heavily depleted.  Jordan Henderson, Carvalho and Curtis Jones all sent back to the treatment rooms in the past seven days.

Thiago has returned to training but this game could be too soon to see him make a full return to 90 minute action.

The reds were handed the 'group of death' last season but managed to win all six group games.  Can they do it again?

Follow the action with us here.

As it happened...

18:27 UK
Other English sides

Chelsea were beaten 1-0 away at Dinamo Zagreb last night.  A result considered so bad that Chelsea, with their new owners in place, have stuck with the standard Stamford Bridge script and sacked Thomas Tuchel.

He was awarded over £250M to spend in the summer transfer window and less than a week later - sacked.  Madness.

Man City comfortably beat Sevilla away with mega-beast Haaland scoring a couple more in his City career.

Spurs welcome Marseille to The TH Stadium.

Man Utd don't play tonight.  They play Thursdays.

18:37 UK
Elsewhere..

It's half time in the other game in our group.

And it's not good news for the blue half of Glasgow.

HT: Ajax 3-0 Rangers

18:45 UK
LFC Confirmed line up

Robertson and Firmino back in for the reds - Milner recalled to midfield.  Jota, Matip, Melo, Darwin Nunez, Thiago all on the bench.

Alisson, Trent, Gomez, Virgil, Robertson, Fabinho, Milner, Elliott, Salah, Firmino, Luis Diaz

Subs: Adrian, Davies, Thiago, Jota, Tsimikas, Nunez, Arthur, Phillips, Matip, Bajcetic

19:05 UK
Napoli team

The Italian side line up like this

Meret, Di Lorenzo, Kim, Rrahmani, Olivera, Lobotka, Zambo Anguissa, Zielinski, Politano, Kvaratskhelia, Osimhen

Subs: Sirigu, Rui, Jesus, Elmas, Lozano, Simeone, Zerbin, Østigård, Zanoli, Gaetano, Raspadori

19:50 UK
Klopp pre-match

Jurgen Klopp said that although the Napoli team is much changed the fans have not.  There were plenty of fireworks outside the LFC team hotel last night according to the reds' boss.

"It could become quite hectic, emotional, aggressive. You have to take that, but on the other side you have to respond by playing football. That's the only chance to slightly calm the atmosphere down."

19:53 UK

Ajax lead the group after beating Rangers 4-0 in Amsterdam earlier this evening.

Can Liverpool get the three points to join them at the top? We're about to find out.

20:00 UK
KICK OFF

We are underway.

20:03 UK

1' Within 30 seconds the masked Osimhen beats the offside trap and hits the post.

Their fans like that.

20:04 UK

4' Osimhen has beaten the offside trap twice in the opening 150 seconds.  And now Napoli win a penalty.

20:06 UK
Goal

5' James Milner with a daft handball in the area. 

Piotr Zielinski steps up to make it 1-0.

20:11 UK

10' Milner goes into the book for a lunging tackle.

Not been his greatest 10 minutes as a Liverpool player/captain.

20:17 UK

16' VAR check for a penalty.  Osimhen went down after connecting with Virgil van Dijk.

20:18 UK

Ref awards the penalty.

20:19 UK
Alisson SAVES the penalty

18' Osimhen stepped up to take the second penalty of the game and Alisson saves it - follow up not on target.

20:25 UK

23' Great ball by Trent, but Mo Salah loses the ball whilst it's in the air.

Should have done a lot better there.

20:28 UK

27' Virgil van Dijk with a goalline clearance after incredibly sloppy football from Joe Gomez.

20:32 UK
Goal

31' Zambo Anguissa makes it two nil.  Gomez failing to clear the ball and then seemingly happy to watch a quick one two go past him.

Diabolical.

20:45 UK
Goal

45' He's only just come on.

Giovanni Simeone in his Champions League debut makes it 3-0 just before half time.

20:48 UK
HALF TIME

Dreadful

Napoli 3-0 Liverpool

Simeone had only just come on for Osimhen moments earlier before making it 3-0.

Absolute shambles.

21:04 UK
LFC Sub

Just one halftime change.

Matip replaces Gomez.

Back underway.

21:06 UK
Chance

46' Liverpool corner.  Matip heads down at the keeper.

21:06 UK
Goal

47' Napoli 4-0

Simeone plays it through the defence.  Zielinski shoots and Alisson saves but it spills and Zielinski runs in and flicks it over him.

Grim.

21:09 UK
GOAL!

49' Luis Diaz at least gets the reds one.

A well taken goal - Liverpool showed a bit of fight to win the ball back and he curled that into the corner nicely.

4-1 to Napoli.

21:11 UK

51' Luis Diaz again at the edge of the box, buys himself some space, but this time it goes just over the crossbar.

21:18 UK
Napoli subs

57' Couple of changes for the home team.  Zerbin and Lozano on.

21:21 UK
CHANCE

62' Luis Diaz looking like the reds best outfield player. 

Powerful header there from a cross that the keeper beats over the bar.

21:22 UK
LFC Triple change

62' Milner, Firmino and Salah all taken off.  Thiago, Jota and Darwin come on.

21:25 UK
YELLOW

65'  A late one from Rrahmani on Luis Diaz.  The Napoli defender gets a yellow card.

21:30 UK

70' Lozano turns and shoots at the edge of the box.  But it's well left by Alisson and it goes wide.

Goal kick.

Matip a sensible head at the back in this second half.

21:35 UK
LFC Sub

76' Arthur Melo comes on to replace Harvey Elliott.  Making his LFC debut - poor lad.

21:52 UK

Deep into added on time here.

It's nearly all over.

21:55 UK
FULL TIME

Napoli 4-1 Liverpool

A horror show of a first half.  Milner handling for a penalty before Alisson had to save a second penalty.  Gomez lucky to escape with one big mistake but he wasn't for the next couple.

Liverpool improved second half as Klopp slowly introduced replacements for Gomez and Milner.

Credit to Napoli - they've had a great start to the season but Liverpool are clearly out of sorts.  The Italian side look the team to beat in this group.

22:02 UK
A poor start to the group

But there's a long way to go. ????

22:04 UK

At the final whistle Jurgen Klopp clasped his hands as if to apologise to the travelling reds fans.

Perhaps not a huge surprise.  That is now Liverpool's fourth consecutive loss away at Napoli - not an enjoyable place to visit on or off the pitch.

Much work needs to be done but there were at the very least some spiriting signs with Thiago and Matip coming on in the second half. 



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