Napoli face Champions League finalists Arsenal on Wednesday

Mikel Arteta's side arrive at the Maradona off the back of a Champions League final appearance and three wins from three in the Premier League. Here's who can hurt Napoli.

by Gennaro SanninoMonday 7 September, 10:25 CET· 2 hours ago

Arsenal Stadium in Tula — Foto: UMNICK · CC BY-SA 3.0

The team arriving at the Maradona on Wednesday evening carries last season with it: a Champions League final. In the Premier League, this campaign has started as well as it possibly could — three wins from the first three matches, a mark the Gunners have hit for only the second time in 22 seasons. The latest, away at Chelsea, came the hard way: down inside two minutes, Arteta's side turned the game around in the second half. It does not prove Arsenal are already at their peak, but it does show a team that knows how to respond when it goes behind.

Mikel Arteta has now been in charge at Arsenal for years and has built a recognisable side: a high press, care on set-pieces, and the ability to change a game's momentum through substitutions. That was clear in the win over Chelsea, turned around in the second half after an early setback. It is the same team that reached the Champions League final last spring — European pedigree that Napoli know about and must respect from the first minute, not discover out on the pitch.

The dangers

Martin Odegaard is the side's guiding light: against Chelsea he scored the winner five minutes after coming back out for the second half, latching onto a Kai Havertz dummy to break into the area. Havertz himself, a former Chelsea striker, made the difference off the bench: he first scored the equaliser, beating the opposition goalkeeper, then set up Bukayo Saka with a creative backheel that forced a big save. Saka remains the constant threat: pace, one-on-ones, and shots from distance that keep opposition goalkeepers busy all match.

Where Napoli can hurt them

Arsenal's defence had not been breached this season, but it took less than two minutes for them to concede from a scramble off an opposition set-piece — the first crack of the season came right there, from dead-ball situations early in games. There is room on the counter too: Chelsea hit the post from a rapid break sparked by a single long ball, a sign that the Gunners can struggle with pace in open space when the team is committed forward.

On Wednesday at the Maradona, Napoli face a Champions League side that came within a whisker of the trophy last year and are on a perfect run this season. Respect, not fear: this is the match our fanbase has been waiting for, the chance to test ourselves against the real Europe — the stage we always want to be on.