Serie A

Cristiano Ronaldo and Juventus move back to the top of Serie A after a 2-0 victory over Inter Milan in the Derby d'Italia on Sunday.

Aaron Ramsey scored the opener then assisted Paulo Dybala for the Bianconeri's second at the Allianz Stadium to put Maurizio Sarri's team a point above Lazio. Meanwhile, Inter stay third, with the Nerazzurri now nine points adrift of Juve, although Antonio Conte's men have played a game less than the leaders.

Juve made the brighter start in a stadium left empty of fans amid the Italian authorities' ongoing response to the outbreak of the coronavirus.

The game's first chance went the way of Matthijs de Ligt, whose header prompted a fine save from Samir Handanovic. It was the first of three stops he would make, with the Inter goalkeeper also denying Ronaldo and Blaise Matuidi.

Inter were content to strike on the counter, a ploy that almost paid dividends when Lautaro Martinez teed up Marcelo Brozovic with a clever touch. Brozovic aimed for the bottom corner, but Juve stopper Wojciech Szczesny was equal to the shot.

Brozovic had wasted an excellent chance, but it was Juve who still looked the most likely to eventually break the deadlock. The hosts' moment came nine minutes after the restart when Ramsey guided a shot beyond Handanovic.

Former Arsenal playmaker Ramsey has been searching for consistency during most of his debut campaign in Turin, but the Welshman is steadily becoming a player Sarri can trust:

Ramsey's burgeoning value was underlined when he played in Dybala to double Juve's advantage on 67 minutes. Dybala took his goal well to continue a habit of punishing Inter:

The away side's hopes for a comeback came and went when Alexis Sanchez teed up ex-Tottenham Hotspur schemer Christian Eriksen, who promptly put his effort over the bar.

Inter's frustrations boiled over when Brozovic was booked for bringing Matuidi down. Amid the protests, Handanovic's backup Daniele Padelli was sent off from the bench.

There was still time for Ronaldo to nearly scored a brilliant solo goal. Sadly, the 35-year-old's radar deserted him after a deft backheel presented him with a shooting chance.

Ultimately, Juve didn't need the luxury of a third. The Bianconeri had already comfortably kept Inter at arm's length and proved there is more to the attacking prowess than Ronaldo's goals.

What's Next?

Juve will be away to Bologna on Friday, while Inter host Getafe in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League last 16 a day earlier.

Vincenzo Spadafora, the minister for sport in Italy, has backed the call of the Players’ Association to suspend the Serie A season. 

Sunday's clash in the Italian top flight between Parma and SPAL was delayed a minute before the game was due to kick off, with officials informing the players that an immediate stop to the campaign was being pondered.

Per Football Italia, Spadafora issued a statement saying he thinks the season should be halted:

"I share the views of Damiano Tommasi, President of the Italian Players’ Association, and I unite with his call to suspend the football league.

"It makes no sense at this moment, while we ask our citizens for enormous sacrifices to prevent the spread of the contagion, to risk the health of players, referees, coaches, fans who will certainly gather to see games, just to protect the interests that revolve around the sport.

"Other Federations have wisely decided to suspend football for the next few days. I think it is the duty of the FIGC President Gabriele Gravina to reflect again, without waiting for the first case of a Serie A player infected, before taking on this very serious responsibility."

Italian football journalist Fabrizio Romano provided more information surrounding the bizarre scenes at Parma: 

The match eventually began.

Premier Sports shared the scenes from the match at the Ennio Tardini Stadium: 

It was confirmed this week that sporting events in Italy will be played behind closed doors until April 3 as a result of the COVID-19 virus.

Per BBC, around 16 million people in northern Italy have been placed in quarantine as the coronavirus continues to spread. The new restriction measures are set to affect around a quarter of the population.

On Saturday, it was confirmed there were 5,883 cases of the virus in Italy.

Juventus will take on Inter Milan on Sunday in Serie A after the original fixture between the two title-chasing sides was postponed because of attempts to limit the spread of coronavirus, per Football Italia.

The game will take place at the Allianz Arena in Turin in the evening, with AC Milan's clash with Genoa and three other postponed ties to be played earlier in the day. Sassuolo will face Bresica on Monday.

All Serie A games will  be played behind closed doors until April 3 following a government decree announced on Wednesday.

Here's a look at the weekend's revised schedule after the Week 26 games replaced the Week 27 fixtures:

Inter head into the game in third place in the table and can cut the gap to second-placed Juventus to three points with a win in Turin. The Nerazzurri also have one game in hand over the Italian champions and two on leaders Lazio.

Steven Zhang, Inter Milan president, backed the decision to play games without supporters in an interview with Simon Stone at BBC Sport.

"Closing doors but continuing matches is the right thing to do, the correct decision so that the people aren’t put at risk. Closing the doors to a match is difficult for many reasons and nobody wants it, but in the end, in order to continue with the calendar and continue with normal activities, we have to prioritise public safety above all else. Right now it’s the only viable option."

The outbreak of coronavirus has hit sporting events across the globe. Serie A fixtures have been postponed, as well as both Coppa Italia semi-finals between Juventus and AC Milan and Napoli and Inter.

Atalanta's UEFA Champions League game at Valencia will also be played behind closed doors on Tuesday:

A number of fixtures in Week 25 were also postponed because of coronavirus, including Inter's home game against Sampdoria. A new date has not yet been confirmed for the match and will depend on Inter's progress in the UEFA Europa League and Coppa Italia, per Football Italia.

The three other fixtures that were called off will now take place on March 18:

There is still no confirmation regarding when the rearranged Coppa Italia semi-finals will occur, with little space left in the fixture list because of the clubs' European commitments.

Juventus and Napoli are both still in the UEFA Champions League, while Inter will face Getafe in the last 16 of the Europa League.

Tuttosport (h/t Football Italia) have reported the last week of May could be used to decide the winner of this season's Coppa Italia in a "Final Four" format.

Not for the first time this season, Matthijs de Ligt was trending on Twitter. But this time, it was nothing to do with a shaky performance.

After team-mate Alex Sandro accidentally trod on his head in the first half of Juventus' recent UEFA Champions League clash with Lyon, De Ligt was left with blood streaming down the right side of his face. Images of the blood-splattered youngster getting patched up at the side of the pitch quickly proliferated on social media. To make matters worse, Lyon midfielder Lucas Tousart scored the only goal of the game while he was off the field receiving treatment.

The 1-0 defeat in the round-of-16 first leg was a bitter disappointment for Juventus, for whom Champions League success is this season's primary objective, but in the postgame analysis, De Ligt was spared criticism.

The focus instead fell on manager Maurizio Sarri's complaints about his team's slow passing and an argument between Leonardo Bonucci and Blaise Matuidi that took place during the warm-up, while the Italian sports newspapers reserved their most cutting remarks for Miralem Pjanic, Rodrigo Bentancur and Juan Cuadrado.

It is an indication of the difficulties that De Ligt has already encountered in his fledgling stint in Turin that being absolved of blame for the Lyon result represented a form of progress. Because up to now, his adaptation to life in Serie A has been far from plain sailing.

De Ligt's problems started on August 30, a little over a month on from his €75 million transfer from Ajax, when Juve's veteran captain Giorgio Chiellini suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in training that would keep him out of action for close to six months.

Juve's plan had been to ease their new recruit into action gently, and De Ligt himself seemed aware of the need to take a slower approach to life in Italy, posting on Instagram that he was taking things "step by step." Chiellini's injury forced Sarri to change tack. De Ligt found himself thrust straight into the starting XI—and straight into the firing line.

His debut performance in a 4-3 home win over Napoli on August 31 was a calamity, and he continued to encounter problems over the weeks that followed, conceding penalties for handballs in a 2-1 win at Inter Milan and a 1-1 draw at Lecce.

Although he scored the winner in his first derby against Torino in November, an underwhelming display in Juve's 3-1 loss at Lazio in early December cost him his place in the team. He started five successive matches on the bench around the turn of the year and did not return to the starting lineup until Merih Demiral, who had taken his place, was struck down by a knee injury in mid-January.

In an October interview with Fox Sports Netherlands, the 20-year-old said he no longer felt "invincible" in the way that he had at Ajax and admitted that he could not say why he was underperforming, vowing simply to "continue to work, to do my best and to try to learn from my team-mates."

As one of the emblems of Ajax's stunning run to the Champions League semi-finals last season, De Ligt arrived in northern Italy accompanied by a huge sense of expectation that his massive transfer fee only served to inflate. While some might have questioned the wisdom of the move after he faltered on his first outings, those who have been in his shoes knew it was best to reserve judgement.

"He had more difficulties at the beginning than people expected," former Juventus defender Jonathan Zebina told Bleacher Report. "But how old is he, 20? He's gone in at the deep end, so it strikes me as completely normal. What isn't normal is that people expected extraordinary things from him straight away."

On top of the usual process of adaptation that a player must observe when they move to a new country, De Ligt has had to contend with the fact that Sarri's arrival as head coach prompted an overhaul of the way that Juventus defend. Where Juve used a man-oriented marking system at set pieces under Massimiliano Allegri, Sarri has switched to a strategy of zonal marking. And the shift has not been without complications.

"Juventus have let in a lot of goals from corners because they're using zonal marking rather than traditional, man-to-man marking, which was a big part of Allegri's defensive strategy," explained Filippo Conticello from La Gazzetta dello Sport. "The players have been making a lot of mistakes, and in the middle of all these defensive problems, you find De Ligt. I don't think it's all his responsibility."

De Ligt has also encountered a different set of expectations for when he is on the ball compared to his time at Ajax. While Sarri has, as expected, turned Juventus into more of a passing team than they were under Allegri—with average possession per game and average number of short passes per game both climbing between last season and this—De Ligt is still seeing much less of the ball than he did in Amsterdam.

In the Eredivisie last season, he would complete an average of 67.2 passes per game. In Serie A, that figure has fallen to 53. For a player who recently revealed to the UEFA website that he played as a playmaker in the Ajax youth teams until the age of 15, his more limited involvement in build-up play will take some getting used to.

Back home in the Netherlands, there has been conjecture as to whether Italy was even the right country for De Ligt in the first place, with influential television pundit Johan Derksen declaring in December that the former Ajax captain "chose the wrong club."

Very few Dutch centre-backs have enjoyed success in Serie A. To illustrate the point, in the past 25 years, the only central defender to have gone to a major tournament with the Netherlands while on the books of an Italian club was Jaap Stam, who was a Lazio player when he reached the semi-finals with the Oranje at Euro 2004.

"In Holland, the defender is the first stage of the attack," Jan-Hermen de Bruijn, editor-in-chief of Dutch football magazine ELF Voetbal, told Bleacher Report. "In Italy, a defender is a defender, which is a completely different concept.

"In Holland, every attack starts with six or seven passes in defence, and then they come forward in a good position. So for this reason he would have touched the ball a lot more [at Ajax]. Defenders in Italy are expected to win the ball and give it to a midfielder, and that's where the attack starts. It's a very different culture."

De Ligt was not at his best in the Netherlands' final Euro 2020 qualifying matches at the end of last year, but national coach Ronald Koeman defended him and backed him to recover from his difficult start at Juventus. Although Inter's Stefan de Vrij is a potential alternative to partner Virgil van Dijk at the heart of the Dutch defence at Euro 2020, there is no suggestion that De Ligt's place in the side is under threat.

Unsurprisingly, given the vast sums of money invested in him, there has been vocal support from senior officials at Juve as well. Fabio Paratici, the club's chief football officer, described the Dutchman as a "monster" in a December interview with Tuttosport and said that he represented "the best investment in a youngster that we've ever made." Sarri told Sky Sport Italia that De Ligt would become "the best defender in the world". 

Zebina was not always the most popular player in the eyes of Juve's fans during his six-year stint in Turin, but he says that although the club's global renown brings with it a significant level of scrutiny, De Ligt will benefit from the fact that the life of a footballer in the Piedmontese capital is generally hassle-free.

"There's more attention, and he'll have to adapt to that," said Zebina, who played for Juve from 2004 to 2010. "You're representing an extremely significant club, so you're obviously perceived as an opponent to beat. But the great advantage of playing at Juve is that life in Turin is very peaceful. You don't feel the kind of pressure you might feel in Rome or Milan or Florence. That's a big, big advantage."

For his part, De Ligt has thrown himself into his new life in Turin, having moved into the city centre with his fiancee, Dutch model AnneKee Molenaar, and their dogs. The pair have been spotted sitting at outdoor cafes on Piazza San Carlo, and the defender has shown a diligent approach to his Italian studies.

"He's learning Italian, and that's very important because we've had players who came from South America, for example, who couldn't speak Italian after many, many years in Italy," Conticello said. "He prefers to speak in English, because he's not comfortable yet in Italian, but I asked him a question in Italian in the mixed zone recently, and you could tell that he understood everything."

Chiellini's comeback means there is now more competition for places at centre-back, but in keeping with his display at Lyon, De Ligt's form since he returned to the starting XI in January has been solid. While there will inevitably be more bumps along the way, the future remains his for the taking.

Stats via WhoScored.com.

Wednesday's Coppa Italia semi-final second leg between Juventus and AC Milan in Turin has been postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak:

The two teams were due to meet at the Allianz Arena with the tie finely balanced at 1-1 after Cristiano Ronaldo scored a late penalty to rescue a draw in the first leg.

However, the game is the latest in Italy to be called off after five Serie A matches were postponed at the weekend, including Juventus' key clash with Inter Milan at the top of the table.

The AC Milan team bus had already arrived in Turin when the announcement was made. The game has been postponed "to an unknown future date," per Football Italia.

Juventus head of communications, Claudio Albanese, has said the authorities have the support of the Italian champions, per Goal's Sam France.

He said: "Juventus respects any decision taken by the authorities, public health is also a priority good for society."

Coronavirus has caused chaos with fixtures in Italy already and seen the government issue a decree suspending sporting events in all affected regions until March 8, per the Guardian.

The postponements will cause problems as the season needs to finish by 24 May due to the summer's European Championship which is scheduled to begin on June 12, per the report.

News agency ANSA has reported the government are also considering suspending all sporting events in the country for a month, per Football Italia.

Inter Milan president Steven Zhang has criticised Serie A president Paolo Dal Pino for their handling of the situation in a post on Instagram, per ESPN's Gabriel Marcotti:

An emergency meeting involving all 20 Serie A clubs will be held on Wednesday to discuss scheduling and how to deal with the current situation, per Football Italia.

The other Coppa Italia semi-final between Napoli and Inter Milan is still scheduled to go ahead at the Stadio San Paolo on Thursday. Napoli lead 1-0 from the first leg at the San Siro.

Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo has confirmed his mother Dolores is in stable condition after being admitted to hospital:

The Portugal international reportedly flew to the Dr Nelio Mendonca hospital in Madeira on Tuesday to be with her after she suffered a stroke, per the Mirror's Jake Polden.

Manager Maurizio Sarri told reporters Tuesday that he is unsure if Ronaldo will be available for the second leg of Juventus' Coppa Italia semi-final against AC Milan on Wednesday.

He said:

"I don't know what will happen, it is a personal matter, so he will discuss it when he returns. His return will depend on how that situation develops. It's obvious that the tactics and plans do change depending on whether Ronaldo is available or not. There's no replacement for him in the whole world, so naturally we'd do something different in his absence."

Juventus are due to take on AC Milan in Turin on Wednesday night with the tie currently level at 1-1 after Ronaldo's stoppage-time penalty cancelled out Ante Rebic's opening goal in the first leg.

Sarri's side may now have to cope without their top scorer for what is a crucial match. The winner of the game will go on to play either Napoli or Inter Milan in the final.

Ronaldo flew to Madeira by private jet after being granted compassionate leave by Juventus to see his mother, who is said to be conscious and in a stable condition, according to Goal's James Westwood.

Dolores has spoken previously about her health issues in the past after being diagnosed with breast cancer. She said in February 2019 she was "fighting for her life" in an interview with Portuguese television (h/t Calciomercato.com).

Juventus are set to return to action Wednesday after having had the weekend off. Their Serie A clash with Inter Milan, which was scheduled for Sunday, was called off due to fears over the spread of coronavirus.

There are also concerns Wednesday's match against AC Milan may also be affected. La Stampa (h/t Football Italia) have reported the game will be postponed because of coronavirus, and a new date for the game is yet to be confirmed.

Rafa Benitez has denied rumours that he tried to teach Cristiano Ronaldo how to better take free-kicks and Luka Modric to stop passing with the outside of his foot during his time as Real Madrid boss. 

The reports emerged after Benitez was sacked by Madrid in January 2016, just seven months after he took charge of the club, per Goal's Joe Wright.

On Ronaldo's free-kicks, he told Marca's Juan Castro and Alberto Rubio:

"It's a lie. At no time did I do that. The only time we discussed free-kicks was in Australia. I told him we analysed how he took them at Manchester United.

"At no time did I tell him how to take them, nor did I tell [Luka] Modric to stop passing with the outside of his foot."

He added on Modric: "All I told him was that when there's a simple pass with the inside of the foot, he had to use the inside of his foot because it's easier for his team-mate. I also used the outside of my foot when I player, but for 10 to 15-metre passes. But it's easy to spread lies."

Ronaldo has scored 53 times from free-kicks in his career, far more than most players can only dream of, even if he's still some way short of Juninho Pernambucano's record of 77.

However, the 35-year-old has been far less effective from dead-ball situations in recent years:

It has been an issue during his time at Juventus, because his presence in the side means free-kick specialists Paulo Dybala and Miralem Pjanic have fewer opportunities to go for goal themselves.

As for Modric, the Croatian is one of the world's best passers of the ball, and he won the Ballon d'Or in 2018.

At 34 he's no longer the force he once was, but he dictates Real Madrid's play from deep and can run games for them in midfield.

Benitez was appointed in 2015 to replace Carlo Ancelotti, who was fired after Los Blancos failed to win La Liga, the UEFA Champions League or the Copa del Rey during his second season in charge.

The Spaniard won 17 of his 25 matches in charge of Real, losing just three times, but one of those defeats was a 4-0 humbling by Barcelona in El Clasico.

During his time as a manager Benitez has won two La Liga titles, the Champions League, the UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup twice and several domestic cups too, but his pragmatic style made him a poor fit at the Santiago Bernabeu.

His replacement, Zinedine Zidane, guided the team to three consecutive Champions League titles and La Liga in 2016-17, among other honours.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's arrival in January has so far done little to revive AC Milan's fortunes. Ibrahimovic found the net once in February, during a 4-2 derby defeat to rivals Inter.

Otherwise, it was a month defined by "what ifs" for the Rossoneri, who drew three of their five games in all competitions, including 1-1 against Juventus in the first leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final. The lone bright spot for Stefano Pioli's team came from the goals of Ante Rebic, who found the net in four-straight games.

AC Milan Statistical Leaders in Serie A (Per the league's official website)

Goals: Ante Rebic 6, Theo Hernandez 5, Hakan Calhanoglu 3, Zlatan Ibrahimovic 2

Assists: Samuel Castillejo 2, Lucas Biglia 1, Zlatan Ibrahimovic 1

Rebic in Prolific Form

• 5 starts in all competitions
• 4 goals
• 12 shots

Rebic's goals earned the Rossoneri four points, first from a 1-0 win at home to Torino followed by a 1-1 draw in Fiorentina. The 26-year-old is showing a greater refinement in front of goal.

He's more alert to when and where chances will develop. Rebic's technique means his first touch is rarely letting him down, while his flair means he can produce something spectacular from distance.

It's a measure of Rebic's burgeoning efficiency he's made the most of his limited playing time:

Rebic has been late to the party because he was often overlooked by Pioli's predecessor Marco Giampaolo. Pioli reshaping Milan into a flexible 4-4-2 setup, combined with Rebic's "graft and determination," have helped the former Eintracht Frankfurt star get back to his best, according to Football Italia's Kaustubh Pandey.

Ibrahimovic Still a Player for the Big Occasion

• 4 starts in all competitions
• 1 goal, 1 assist
• 11 shots

He's 38 and past his best, but Ibrahimovic can still be trusted to turn the clock back on a big occasions. He chose the Milan derby to produce his best game since returning to the Rossoneri.

A goal and an assist for Rebic gave a superior Inter squad all it could handle and contributed to an entertaining six-goal thriller.

The powerhouse centre-forward was unfortunate to have another goal against Fiorentina ruled out by VAR. While the decision went against him, Ibrahimovic proved he still has the strength, flair and improvisational skills to unlock any defence.

He's only been on the scoresheet three times so far during his second tour with Milan, but the Swede's quality remains key to qualifying for next season's UEFA Champions League.  

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's contract at AC Milan will automatically renew if they reach the Champions League, Paolo Maldini has revealed 爛 pic.twitter.com/ngw07CKzu5

— Goal (@goal) February 23, 2020

It's a tall order with the Rossoneri seventh and nine points adrift of Atalanta in fourth. Yet an in-form strike partnership like the one between Rebic and Ibrahimovic gives Milan an edge over the other contenders.

Juventus' pivotal game with Inter Milan in the Serie A title race is the standout fixture among a group of matches rescheduled for May 13 amid fears about the potential spread of the coronavirus.

The reshuffled fixture list will mean moving the Coppa Italia final to May 20, according to Football Italia.

Juve and the Nerazzurri were supposed to play behind closed doors this weekend to safeguard against the dangers of an outbreak in the northern regions of the country. Yet the Juventus official website noted there had been a "backlash" to the decision to play in an enclosed space.

As well as the Derby d'Italia, Inter's city rivals AC Milan will also host Genoa on May 13, while Udinese's game with Fiorentina, Parma vs. SPAL and Sassuolo against Brescia have also been reset for the final day.

Football Italia detailed a crisis meeting involving both the Italian football authorities and the government. The same source also reported how moving the matches, rather than cancelling them altogether, means clubs have avoided losing a lucrative payday, with Juve set for €5 million for hosting Inter.

Yet while the games will still go ahead at some point, there is the potential for some major fixture congestion. Specifically, Inter qualifying for the Coppa Italia final would take away one more option to play the Nerazzurri's game with Sampdoria, per Football Italia.

The fixture has already been postponed once. However, Inter's chances of competing in the showpiece round of the cup look strong, with Antonio Conte's team facing Napoli in the semi-final second leg on Thursday hoping to overturn a 1-0 aggregate deficit.

It's a similar story for the Bianconeri, who host AC Milan on Wednesday with the tie evenly balanced at 1-1.

Away from the cup, the domestic title could well come down to the outcome of Inter and Juve's meeting. The latter are top of the table, six points ahead of third-place Inter, who have a game in hand.

Serie A is responding to the spread of a virus that has infected over 300 people in the north, according to Daniele Verri BBC Sport, who noted how games in Serie B have been called off, while Inter and Milan have closed their offices and asked staff to work from home.

Napoli boss Gennaro Gattuso said his side will be prepared when they take on Barcelona in the second leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie. 

The Partenopei held the Catalan giants to a 1-1 draw on Tuesday in Naples.

"We know the difficulties we are going through," Gattuso said, per Goal's Dejan Kalinic. "We will buy helmets and armour. We will get all the necessary [tools] and will play the next game. Nothing is over."

The Italian also reserved praise for his side. He told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Goal's Sacha Pisani), Napoli had to adapt their approach because of Barcelona's attacking threat, which he felt they did well:

"They force you to defend deep, and we had to play like that, because if there were spaces back there, they could really hurt us.

"I think they barely grazed us tonight, they hardly had a single shot on goal. They could've been there all night and not scored, but we conceded after one single error. They didn't hurt us, it barely tickled."

Dries Mertens gave Napoli the lead in the 30th minute with a superb strike from the edge of the area (U.S. only):

Antoine Griezmann replied for the visitors in the second half (U.S. only):

Arturo Vidal was sent off late for two bookable offences. He caught Mario Rui with a late challenge before an aggressive confrontation with him (UK only):

Griezmann's goal was one of only two shots Barca had on target at the Stadio San Paolo, but football writer and broadcaster Carlo Garganese was unhappy with the way Napoli set up against them:

Tuesday's match was the fifth time Barca have played away from home under Quique Setien since he took charge in January.

In their previous four, they made life difficult for themselves in 2-1 and 3-2 wins over Ibiza and Real Betis, respectively, either side of defeats at Valencia and Athletic Bilbao.

Barca, being at home in the second leg with an away goal under their belts, have the slight edge in the tie.

However, they'll be without the suspended Vidal and Sergio Busquets, who picked up a yellow card to earn a one-match ban.

He was one of Barca's top performers on Tuesday, per Squawka's Muhammad Butt:

The Blaugrana will still be able to call upon the likes of Frenkie de Jong, Arthur and Ivan Rakitic, but Busquets' absence in particular will leave them more vulnerable.

Mertens has six goals and one assist to his name in seven Champions League appearances this season, so with him in the side, Napoli pose plenty of threat to Barcelona.