UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE - 2015/16 SEASON MATCH PRESS KITS Stadio San Paolo - Naples Thursday 5 November 2015 19.00CET (19.00 local time) SSC Napoli Group D - Matchday 4 FC Midtjylland Last updated 06/11/2015 13:42CET Previous meetings 2 Match background 3 Team facts 4 Squad list 6 Fixtures and results 10 Match-by-match lineups 13 Match officials 15 Legend 16 1 SSC Napoli - FC Midtjylland Thursday 5 November 2015 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Match press kit Stadio San Paolo, Naples Previous meetings Head to Head UEFA Europa League Date Stage Match Result Venue Goalscorers Pušić 43; Callejón 19, 22/10/2015 GS FC Midtjylland - SSC Napoli 1-4 Herning Gabbiadini 31, 40, Higuaín 90+4 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 4 1 FC Midtjylland 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 4 SSC Napoli - Record versus clubs from opponents' country SSC Napoli have not played against a club from their opponents' country FC Midtjylland - Record versus clubs from opponents' country FC Midtjylland have not played against a club from their opponents' country 2 SSC Napoli - FC Midtjylland Thursday 5 November 2015 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Match press kit Stadio San Paolo, Naples Match background SSC Napoli won 4-1 at FC Midtjylland on matchday three and will look to confirm their UEFA Europa League round of 32 place as the Danish champions fly south. Previous meetings • Midtjylland's maiden encounter with Italian opponents ended in one of their heaviest home defeats in European competition, Napoli prevailing 4-1. It was Napoli's first game against a Danish side. • Of the 39 UEFA club competition games between sides from these nations, Danish teams have won three to the Italian sides' 26; it is 18 matches (D7 L11) since the last Danish victory – FC København's 2-1 success at home to SS Lazio in the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round. Form guide • If Napoli win they are through, and they will progress regardless if Club Brugge KV hold Legia Warszawa in the other Group D contest. • If Midtjylland win, and Brugge v Legia ends in a draw, the Danish champions and Napoli will be certain of a round of 32 place. • Napoli, SK Rapid Wien and SC Braga are the only teams to have won all three of their games going into matchday four. • Napoli are the top scorers in this season's group stage with 11 goals – an average of 3.67 per game. • Napoli and PAOK FC have conceded just once, giving them the group stage's tightest defences. R. Standard de Liège, in 2011/12, are the only side to have made it to the end of a UEFA Europa League group stage with just one goal conceded. • Napoli made it through to the knockout stage in all three of their previous UEFA Europa League group stage campaigns. • This is Midtjylland's first UEFA group stage tilt. Trivia and links • The journey from Herning to Naples is around 1,750km. • Midtjylland defender Jim Larsen turns 30 the day after the game. • Midtjylland defender Francis Dickoh and Napoli winger Dries Mertens were team-mates at FC Utrecht in 2009/10. • Napoli goalkeeper Pepe Reina has made 144 UEFA club competition outings – more than any other player in this season's tournament. He is ninth, alongside Roberto Carlos, on the all-time club appearance leaderboard. • Midtjylland are one of ten sides in the group stage who qualified for Europe this season as domestic champions, along with KF Skënderbeu (Albania), Qarabağ FK (Azerbaijan), APOEL FC (Cyprus), FC Viktoria Plzeň (Czech Republic), KKS Lech Poznań (Poland), FK Partizan (Serbia), Celtic FC (Scotland), Molde FK (Norway) and FC Basel 1893 (Switzerland). • Midtjylland (literally: central Jutland) were formed in 1999 with the merger of Ikast fS and Herning Fremad BK. The coaches • Naples-born Maurizio Sarri replaced Rafael Benítez when the Spaniard left Napoli for Real Madrid CF at the end of last season. Having spent much of his career in the lower leagues, he led Empoli FC into Serie A in 2013/14 and kept them up comfortably last term. • Midtjylland boss Jess Thorup played in Germany and Austria as a forward. He made his name as a coach at Esbjerg fB, where he won a Danish Cup before taking Denmark to the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship semi- finals. Midtjylland hired him this summer. 3 SSC Napoli - FC Midtjylland Thursday 5 November 2015 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Match press kit Stadio San Paolo, Naples 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: 5 (2014) Ten-year European record (UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup unless indicated otherwise) 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 Champions League round of 16 2010/11: round of 32 2009/10: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2008/09: first round (having qualified as UEFA Intertoto Cup winners) 2007/08: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2006/07: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2005/06: did not take part in UEFA club competition Records UEFA club competition • Biggest home win 5-0: Napoli v Club Brugge KV 17/09/15, UEFA Europa League group stage 5-0: Napoli v KF Vllaznia 28/08/08, UEFA Cup second qualifying round second leg • Biggest away win 1-5: Valencia CF v Napoli 16/09/92, UEFA Cup first round first leg 0-4: Trabzonspor AŞ v Napoli 19/02/15, UEFA Europa League round of 32 first leg • Heaviest home defeat 0-3: Napoli v FC Viktoria Plzeň 14/02/13, UEFA Europa League round of 32 first leg • Heaviest away defeat 5-1: SV Werder Bremen v Napoli 06/12/89, UEFA Cup third round second leg UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup • Biggest home win 5-0: Napoli v Club Brugge KV (see above) 5-0: Napoli v KF Vllaznia (see above) • Biggest away win 1-5: Valencia CF v Napoli (see above) 0-4: Trabzonspor AŞ v Napoli (see above) • Heaviest home defeat 0-3: Napoli v FC Viktoria Plzeň (see above) • Heaviest away defeat 5-1: SV Werder Bremen v Napoli (see above) FC Midtjylland Formed: 1999 Nickname: Ulvene (The Wolves) UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets) 4 SSC Napoli - FC Midtjylland Thursday 5 November 2015 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Match press kit Stadio San Paolo, Naples • None Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets) League title: 1 (2015) Ten-year European record (UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup unless indicated otherwise) 2014/15: play-offs 2013/14: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2012/13: play-offs 2011/12: third qualifying round 2010/11: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2009/10: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2008/09: second qualifying round 2007/08: first round 2006/07: did not take part in UEFA club competition 2005/06: first round Records UEFA club competition • Biggest home win 4-0: Midtjylland v Bangor City FC 31/07/08, UEFA Cup first qualifying round second leg • Biggest away win 1-6: Bangor City FC v Midtjylland 17/07/08, UEFA Cup first qualifying round first leg • Heaviest home defeat 1-4: Midtjylland v SSC Napoli 22/10/15, UEFA Europa League group stage 0-3 on three occasions, most recently v BSC Young Boys 23/08/12, UEFA Europa League play-off first leg • Heaviest away defeat 4-1: Panathinaikos FC v Midtjylland 21/08/14, UEFA Europa League play-off first leg UEFA Europa League/UEFA Cup • Biggest home win 4-0: Midtjylland v Bangor City FC (see above) • Biggest away win 1-6: Bangor City FC v Midtjylland (see above) • Heaviest home defeat 1-4: Midtjylland v SSC Napoli 0-3 on three occasions, most recently v BSC Young Boys (see above) • Heaviest away defeat 4-1: Panathinaikos FC v Midtjylland (see above) 5 SSC Napoli - FC Midtjylland Thursday 5 November 2015 - 19.00CET (19.00 local time) Match press kit Stadio San Paolo, Naples Squad list SSC Napoli Current season All-time UEL League UEL UEFA No. Player Nat. DoB Age D Pld Gls Pld Gls Pld Gls Pld Gls Goalkeepers 1 Rafael Cabral POR 20/05/1990 25 - - - - - 7 - 10 - 22 Gabriel BRA 27/09/1992 23 - 1 - - - 1 - 1 - 25 Pepe Reina ESP 31/08/1982 33 - 2 - 11 - 58 - 144 - 54 Antonio Ferrara ITA 21/04/1998 17 - - - - - - - - - 55 Alessio Gionta ITA 01/04/1997 18 - - - - - - - - - Defenders 2 Elseid Hysaj ALB 20/02/1994 21 - 1 - 11 - 1 - 1 - 3 Ivan Strinić CRO 17/07/1987 28 - 1 - - - 22 - 34 1 11 Christian Maggio ITA 11/02/1982 33 - 2 - 3 - 23 1 45 2 21 Vlad Chiricheş ROU 14/11/1989 25 - 2 - 3 - 21 3 28 3 26 Kalidou Koulibaly FRA 20/06/1991 24 - 3 - 8 - 24 - 30 - 31 Faouzi Ghoulam ALG 01/02/1991 24 - 3 - 9 - 19 - 20 - 33 Raúl Albiol ESP 04/09/1985 30 - 1 - 11 - 22 - 73 2 52 Luigi D'Ignazio ITA 13/03/1998 17 - - - - - - - - - 53 Aniello Esposito ITA 31/03/1997 18 - - - - - - - - - 56 Antonio Granata ITA 20/01/1997 18 - - - - - - - - - 60 Giorgio Palumbo ITA 16/01/1997 18 - - - - - - - - - 96 Sebastiano Luperto ITA 06/09/1996 19 - - - - - - - - - Midfielders 5 Allan BRA 08/01/1991 24 - 3 - 10 3 3 - 7 - 6 Mirko Valdifiori ITA 21/04/1986 29 - 2 - 4 - 2 - 2 - 8 Jorginho ITA 20/12/1991 23 - 1 - 10 - 7 - 9 - 14 Dries Mertens BEL 06/05/1987 28 - 2 3 9 1 39 12 56 14 17 Marek Hamšík SVK 27/07/1987 28 - 2 1 11 1 32 7 52 12 19 David López ESP 09/10/1989 26 - 3 - 9 - 12 1 12 1 50 Fabrizio De Simone ITA 09/05/1997 18 - - - - - - - - - 51 Gennaro De Simone ITA 22/05/1997 18 - - - - - - - - - 59 Umberto Otranto ITA 30/05/1998 17 - - - - - - -