Fernando and Hoy warn Villarreal's urgency in Champions League vs Napoli

In the morning of training, the focused faces of the Villarreal players are silhouetted under the lights of La Cerámica, while the Champions League anthem sounds again after months of silence. The team, coached by Iñigo Pérez, is preparing for the clash against Napoli, a key fixture to avoid a new urgency in the competition.

Recent improvements and European challenge

According to journalist Fernando Gabarró of EFE, Villarreal has improved its performances in recent weeks, despite the defeat to Real Madrid. After falling 3-2 to Borussia Dortmund, the yellow side aims to translate that evolution in Europe and secure its first win in the group stage.

The goal is to add three points against Napoli, who also began the phase with a loss. Winning would break the pattern of the previous edition, where Villarreal did not win any match and fell behind.

Tactical keys and upcoming commitments

To achieve this, Iñigo Pérez relies on the talent of Alberto Moleiro and the dribbling of Ilias Akhomach, while goalkeeper Gulácsi seeks stability under the posts. In the opponent’s goal, Napoli has quality players such as De Bruyne, although their style will not be flashy.

Barcelona, Atlético and Villarreal start second Champions League round

The schedule will not give a break: after Napoli, Villarreal will travel to Anfield to face Liverpool and will host PSG, the current European champions. The pressure of those commitments raises the importance of the match at La Cerámica.

In the likely lineup, Villarreal will field Gulácsi; Mouriño, Foyth, Veiga and Romero; Gueye, Comesaña; Akhomach, Moreno, Moleiro and Mikautadze. Napoli will line up Meret; Di Lorenzo, Rrahmani, Rafa Marín and Spinaazzola; Gilmour, Lobotka; Politano, De Bruyne, Lang and Hojlund.

The absences of Buchanan and Pépé complete the list of missing players that the coach will have to manage. With the Champions League and the Europa League at stake, the victory against Napoli becomes essential to maintain confidence and progress in the competition.