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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Charlotte Coates

'I don't think they'll be happy' - Napoli boss Luciano Spalletti sends Liverpool message after Champions League draw

Napoli boss Luciano Spalletti is looking forward to playing against 'legendary' sides in Group A of the Champions League after his team was drawn alongside Liverpool, Ajax and Rangers on Thursday evening.

Spalletti named Anfield as one of the world's 'great footballing theatres', along with the Johan Cruyff Arena and Ibrox. Napoli will face a tough task qualifying for the knock out stages of the Champions League, but they were a pot three side Liverpool may have wanted to avoid.

Liverpool have taken on Napoli a number of times in the Champions League, including memorably in the group stages of 2018/19 and the Reds then went on to lift the trophy at the end of that memorable season.

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After the draw was concluded on Thursday, the Napoli boss spoke about the draw his side had been handed to sscnapoli.it.

“We’ve been pitted against three very tricky teams but I don’t think they’ll be too happy to have got Napoli either," said Spalletti. "We’ve ended up in a really difficult group, but then nearly all Champions League groups are. It’s always hard to put a percentage on your chances of going through.

“The main thing is we do ourselves justice in the world’s premier club competition – and doing ourselves justice means increasing our chances of reaching the next round.

“We’re in a group with three clubs who have helped write the history of European football, three legendary clubs who play at some of the world’s great footballing theatres: the Johan Cruyff Arena, Anfield and Ibrox Stadium. It will be a journey into the story of European and world football.”

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