Uefa Europa League
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UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE - 2020/21 SEASON MATCH PRESS KITS Stadio Diego Armando Maradona - Napoli Thursday 10 December 2020 SSC Napoli 18.55CET (18.55 local time) Real Sociedad de Fútbol Group F - Matchday 6 Last updated 26/02/2021 12:28CET Previous meetings 2 Match background 4 Team facts 6 Squad list 8 Fixtures and results 11 Match-by-match lineups 15 Match officials 17 Legend 19 1 SSC Napoli - Real Sociedad de Fútbol Thursday 10 December 2020 - 18.55CET (18.55 local time) Match press kit Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Napoli Previous meetings Head to Head UEFA Europa League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Real Sociedad de Fútbol - SSC 29/10/2020 GS 0-1 San Sebastian Politano 56 Napoli Home Away Final Total Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA SSC Napoli 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 Real Sociedad de Fútbol 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 SSC Napoli - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Lenglet 10, Messi 23, 3-1 08/08/2020 R16 FC Barcelona - SSC Napoli Barcelona Luis Suárez 45+1 (P); agg: 4-2 Insigne 45+5 (P) Mertens 30; 25/02/2020 R16 SSC Napoli - FC Barcelona 1-1 Naples Griezmann 57 UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Mertens 24; Ramos 1-3 07/03/2017 R16 SSC Napoli - Real Madrid CF Naples 52, Mertens 57 (og), agg: 2-6 Morata 90+1 Benzema 18, Kroos 15/02/2017 R16 Real Madrid CF - SSC Napoli 3-1 Madrid 49, Casemiro 54; Insigne 8 UEFA Europa League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 1-1 25/02/2016 R32 SSC Napoli - Villarreal CF Naples Hamšík 17; Pina 59 agg: 1-2 18/02/2016 R32 Villarreal CF - SSC Napoli 1-0 Villarreal Denis Suárez 82 UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Aritz Aduriz 61, 69, 3-1 27/08/2014 PO Athletic Club - SSC Napoli Bilbao Ibai Gómez 74; agg: 4-2 Hamšík 47 Higuaín 68; Muniain 19/08/2014 PO SSC Napoli - Athletic Club 1-1 Naples 41 UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 07/12/2011 GS Villarreal CF - SSC Napoli 0-2 Villarreal Inler 65, Hamšík 76 Hamšík 15, Cavani 17 27/09/2011 GS SSC Napoli - Villarreal CF 2-0 Naples (P) 2 SSC Napoli - Real Sociedad de Fútbol Thursday 10 December 2020 - 18.55CET (18.55 local time) Match press kit Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Napoli UEFA Europa League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 2-1 Nilmar 42, Rossi 24/02/2011 R32 Villarreal CF - SSC Napoli Villarreal agg: 2-1 45+1; Hamšík 18 17/02/2011 R32 SSC Napoli - Villarreal CF 0-0 Naples UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 1-0 30/09/1992 R1 SSC Napoli - Valencia CF Naples Fonseca 8 agg: 6-1 Roberto 56; Fonseca 16/09/1992 R1 Valencia CF - SSC Napoli 1-5 Valencia 20, 60, 64, 87, 90 European Champions Clubs' Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers 1-1 Francini 9; 30/09/1987 R1 SSC Napoli - Real Madrid CF Naples agg: 1-3 Butragueño 43 Míchel 19 (P), 16/09/1987 R1 Real Madrid CF - SSC Napoli 2-0 Madrid Tendillo 76 Real Sociedad de Fútbol - Record versus clubs from opponents' country UEFA Champions League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Real Sociedad de Fútbol - 05/11/2003 GS1 0-0 San Sebastian Juventus Trezeguet 3, 63, Di Juventus - Real Sociedad de 21/10/2003 GS1 4-2 Turin Vaio 7, 45+1; Tudor Fútbol 67 (og), De Pedro 80 UEFA Cup Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Real Sociedad de Fútbol - FC 2-0 03/10/1979 R1 San Sebastian Satrústegui 22, 78 Internazionale Milano agg: 2-3 FC Internazionale Milano - Real Muraro 46, Baresi 48, 19/09/1979 R1 3-0 Milan Sociedad de Fútbol Marini 76 Home Away Final Total Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA SSC Napoli 8 2 5 1 9 3 0 6 0 0 0 0 17 5 5 7 20 22 Real Sociedad de Fútbol 3 1 1 1 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 5 1 1 3 4 8 3 SSC Napoli - Real Sociedad de Fútbol Thursday 10 December 2020 - 18.55CET (18.55 local time) Match press kit Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Napoli Match background Qualification for the UEFA Europa League knockout phase is on the line as Napoli and Real Sociedad face off at the Stadio San Paolo in an intriguing climax to Group F. • Napoli are two points clear of both Real Sociedad and AZ Alkmaar at the top of the table following their 1-1 draw in the Netherlands on Matchday 5, when the Spanish side had to come from behind twice to earn a 2-2 home draw with bottom-placed Rijeka. • The Italian side will qualify if they avoid defeat, and top the group with a win, but will be eliminated if they lose and AZ win at eliminated Rijeka. Real Sociedad will also finish first if they win; failing that, they must match or better AZ's result in Croatia in order to qualify behind Napoli as runners-up. Previous meetings • The clubs met for the first time on 29 October, Napoli winning 1-0 in San Sebastián thanks to Matteo Politano's deflected long-range strike. • Napoli's 2019/20 European campaign was ended by a Spanish club as Barcelona overcame them in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 (1-1 h, 1-3 a). That first-leg draw was their fifth in eight home games against Spanish visitors (W2 L1), extending their winless home run to four matches. • Real Sociedad have lost both previous UEFA contests in Italy, going down 3-0 at Internazionale in the 1979/80 UEFA Cup first round and 4-2 at Juventus in the 2003/04 UEFA Champions League group stage. Form guide Napoli • After four successive seasons in the UEFA Champions League, Napoli are back in the UEFA Europa League group stage – the prize for winning the Coppa Italia, which they claimed under new coach Gennaro Gattuso after a shoot-out victory against Juventus in the final (0-0, 4-2 on pens). The Partenopei, seventh in Serie A, also reached the UEFA Champions League round of 16 last term after qualifying unbeaten as runners-up to Liverpool in their group. • The 1988/89 UEFA Cup winners have competed in the UEFA Europa League knockout phase on seven previous occasions, four times after coming through their group. They have never failed to qualify from their section and have progressed as group winners on the two most recent occasions, winning all six matches last time out in 2015/16 when they also set the current record for the most goals scored in a UEFA Europa League group (22). • Napoli scored five goals in each of their three home group games in 2015/16 – against Club Brugge, Midtjylland and Legia Warszawa – and were on a run of six successive UEFA Europa League group victories at the Stadio San Paolo until AZ beat them 1-0 there on Matchday 1. Their overall home record in this competition, including qualifying, is now W16 D7 L5, a 2-0 win against Rijeka on Matchday 4 following two successive defeats. Real Sociedad • A sixth-placed finish in the 2019/20 Spanish Liga secured a return to European football for Real Sociedad after a two-season absence. Imanol Aguacil's team also reached the final of the Copa del Rey, against Athletic, but that all- Basque fixture has been postponed indefinitely. • The San Sebastián club's most recent European campaign, in 2017/18, was also their only previous experience of the UEFA Europa League group stage. They qualified as runners-up behind Zenit, registering 12 points and 16 goals, before going out to Salzburg (2-2 h, 1-2 a) in the round of 32. • Since losing all three away group fixtures on their most recent UEFA Champions League appearance, in 2013/14, Real Sociedad have won four, drawn one and lost three of their eight European games on the road. They have kept clean sheets in four of their last five away games in the UEFA Europa League group stage (W3 D1 L1), including this season at both Rijeka (1-0) and AZ (0-0). Links and trivia • Fabián Ruiz is a current Spanish international who played in his homeland for both Real Betis and Elche before joining Napoli in 2018. He is a national team-mate of Real Sociedad duo Mikel Merino and Mikel Oyarzabal. • Napoli's Slovakian midfielder Stanislav Lobotka also played in Spain for Celta Vigo from July 2017 to January 2020. • Napoli's David Ospina, who saved a penalty against AZ on Matchday 5, and Real Sociedad's Nacho Monreal were colleagues at Arsenal from 2014 to 2018. • Dries Mertens, who scored Napoli's goal in Alkmaar on his 100th appearance in UEFA club competition, and Real Sociedad's Adnan Januzaj both play for Belgium. • Napoli are one of six former UEFA Cup winners in this season's UEFA Europa League group stage – along with Bayer Leverkusen (Group C), PSV Eindhoven (E), Tottenham (J), CSKA Moskva and Feyenoord (both K). 4 SSC Napoli - Real Sociedad de Fútbol Thursday 10 December 2020 - 18.55CET (18.55 local time) Match press kit Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Napoli 5 SSC Napoli - Real Sociedad de Fútbol Thursday 10 December 2020 - 18.55CET (18.55 local time) Match press kit Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Napoli Team facts SSC Napoli Formed: 1926 Nickname: Partenopei (a reference to Parthenope, one of the Sirens of Greek mythology) UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets) • UEFA Cup (1): 1989 Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets) League title: 2 (1990) Italian Cup: 6 (2020) Ten-year European record (UEFA Europa League unless indicated otherwise) 2019/20: UEFA Champions League round of 16 2018/19: quarter-finals (having transferred from UEFA Champions League group stage) 2017/18: round of 32 (having transferred from UEFA Champions League group stage) 2016/17: UEFA Champions League round of 16 2015/16: round of 32 2014/15: semi-finals (having transferred from UEFA Champions League play-offs) 2013/14: round of 16 (having transferred from UEFA Champions League group stage) 2012/13: round of 32 2011/12: UEFA