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Champions League line-ups: Villarreal vs. Napoli
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- Champions League line-ups: Villarreal vs. Napoli
Champions League line-ups: Villarreal vs. Napoli
Scott McTominay gets his first start since heart surgery, joining Kevin De Bruyne and Rasmus Hojlund as Napoli visit Villarreal in the Champions League.
It kicks off at the Estadio de la Ceramica at 20.00 UK time (21.00 CEST).
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NAPLES, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 13: Massimiliano Allegri SSC Napoli head coach during the Serie A match between SSC Napoli and Bologna FC at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on September 13, 2026 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)
The Partenopei had a very tough opening Champions League fixture and capitulated 1-0 at home to Arsenal , which was their third consecutive defeat in all competition.
Things have improved since then for Max Allegri, scraping a win over Bologna, 1-1 draw at Fiorentina, and Saturday's 3-0 victory against Frosinone.
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McTominay made his comeback as a substitute a month on from surgery to correct a mild benign arrhythmia, and here gets his first start.
Champions League: Porto vs. Napoli – probable line-ups, where to watch on TV
NAPLES, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 09: Rasmus Hojlund of SSC Napoli competes for the ball with Ezri Konsa of Arsenal FC during the UEFA Champions League 2026/27 League Phase MD1 match between SSC Napoli and Arsenal FC at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on September 09, 2026 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Maurizio Lagana/Getty Images)
The absentee list remains extensive, as Napoli miss Frank Anguissa, Mathias Olivera, Antonio Vergara, Alisson Santos, Costantino Favasuli and Alessandro Buongiorno.
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Giovane wasn't in the Champions League squad list until this week, but has been drafted in and thrown straight into the starting XI for the new 3-4-2-1 formation with De Bruyne and Hojlund.
Vanja Milinkovic-Savic steps in for Alex Meret in goal, while Giovanni Di Lorenzo shifts over to the left in order to make way for Matteo Politano.
NAPLES, ITALY – APRIL 06: Giovane of SSC Napoli battles for possession with Luka Modric of AC Milan during the Serie A match between SSC Napoli and AC Milan at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on April 06, 2026 in Naples, Italy. (Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)
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Villarreal opened their Champions League campaign with a 3-2 defeat away to Borussia Dortmund and sit 11thin LaLiga table after a stuttering start to the season.
They lost 1-0 to Real Madrid at the weekend in a fiery encounter that saw Vinicius Junior sent off for pulling Nathan Saliba's hair.
Nicolas Pepe and former Inter midfielder Tajon Buchanan are out injured, but goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi has withdrawn from the squad after he and his family were the victims of an armed robbery early this morning.
A statement from the club confirms they are unharmed, but naturally stunned by the home invasion only hours ago.
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Ex-Juventus defender Renato Veiga features, with Gerard Moreno and Georges Mikautadze pushing Ayoze Perez to the bench.
VILLARREAL, SPAIN – OCTOBER 01: Renato Veiga of Villarreal CF celebrates scoring his team's second goal during the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD2 match between Villarreal CF and Juventus at Estadio de la Ceramica on October 01, 2025 in Villarreal, Spain. (Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images)
Villarreal vs. Napoli line-ups
Villarreal:Luiz Junior; Mourino, Pau Navarro, Renato Veiga, Carlos Romero; Pape Gueye, Saliba, Santi Comesana, Alberto Moleiro; Gerard Moreno, Mikautadze
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Villarreal bench:Ruben Gomez, Logan Costa, Freeman, Alassane, Foyth, Akhomach, Carlos Macia, Oluwaseyi, Ayoze Perez, Sergi Cardona, El Jmili, Joselillo Gaitan
Napoli:Milinkovic-Savic; Rafa Marin, Rrahmani, Badiashile; Politano, Gilmour, McTominay, Di Lorenzo; Giovane, De Bruyne; Hojlund
Napoli bench:Meret, Contini, Neres, Lucca, Beukema, Spinazzola, Lobotka, Lang
Ref:Siebert (GER)
