NAPLES: Carlo Ancelotti was looking forward to meeting up again with his old friend Gianluigi Buffon ahead of Tuesday’s Champions League clash with “unpredictable” former club Paris Saint-Germain.
“It’s always a pleasure to meet him again, to see that he is motivated despite his age, I have great respect for the professional and great affection for my friend,” said Ancelotti.
Buffon, 40, will make his European debut with the French champions against the heated backdrop of 55,000 fans in the San Paolo Stadium in his first game in Italy since leaving Juventus in the summer.
“Even if the result in the first leg (2-2) could have been better for us in the end we will need something extraordinary to beat Paris,” said Ancelotti, who coached PSG from 2011 to 2013.
Napoli are second in Group C on five points after three games, one behind leaders Liverpool.
PSG face the prospect of potential early elimination as they sit third with four.
“The group remains very balanced and uncertain, which is a very positive thing for us,” estimated Ancelotti.
Napoli are counting on Ancelotti’s European credentials — the veteran coach won the Champions League twice with AC Milan in 2003 and 2007 and once with Real Madrid in 2014 — to pull them through against PSG, who have the two most expensive players in history in Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
“We know the difficulties, the importance and what we have to do tomorrow night,” said Ancelotti.
“They remain a strong team, very difficult to deal with, and at the moment they’re totally unpredictable.
“Having done well in the first leg gives us more conviction, but it’s still a really difficult game.”
Meanwhile, Ancelotti added that Qatar-owned PSG were not the same team he coached to the Ligue 1 title in 2013.
“There are many differences, the team was under construction, but now the project has reached the final stage.”
Carlo Ancelotti ready for Gianluigi Buffon reunion in Napoli vs. PSG Champions League clash
Carlo Ancelotti ready for Gianluigi Buffon reunion in Napoli vs. PSG Champions League clash
- Paris Saint-Germain in need of a good result in Naples.
- Buffon set to make his European debut for the Qatar-owned team.
Barcelona pounces on Real Madrid stumble and regains lead of La Liga with a 3-0 win over Levante
- Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna
MADRID: Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrid’s stumble and regained the Spanish league lead with a comfortable 3-0 win over relegation-threatened Levante on Sunday.
Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Fermín López scored a goal each as Barcelona ended a two-game losing streak to get back in front of rival Madrid, which lost 2-1 at Osasuna on Saturday.
Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna.
Barcelona was coming off a 2-1 loss to Girona in the league and a 4-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.
“It was important to win and earn three points again,” Barcelona defender João Cancelo said. “Soccer gives you these opportunities to rebound and that’s what we did today, playing well again after two bad games.”
Barcelona had earned a clean sheet only once in its previous six games in all competitions.
Good start for Barcelona
Bernal scored from close range four minutes into the match at the Camp Nou Stadium. The 18-year-old Bernal had scored his first goal with the first team two rounds ago in a win over Mallorca.
“They had an early chance but my goal helped us settle and gain some confidence,” Bernal said.
De Jong added to the lead from inside the area in the 32nd and López sealed the victory with a beautiful long-range shot in the 81st, with the ball ricocheting off the post before going into the net.
Levante’s Australian goalkeeper Mathew Ryan kept Barcelona from adding the fourth with a pair of outstanding saves in a row in the final minutes, first off a header by Raphinha and then off a point-blank strike from López on the rebound.
It was the fourth straight defeat for Levante, which sits in 19th place. It is one point ahead of last-place Oviedo, which has a game in hand.
Levante has only one victory in its last eight matches.
Pedri entered the match in the 66th to make his return to action after an injury layoff.
Other results
Sevilla won 1-0 at 10-man Getafe for its second win in its last 10 matches in all competitions.
Djibril Sow scored a 64th-minute winner for the visitors. Getafe played a man down from the 26th after a straight red card for Djene Dakonam.
The result left Sevilla in 11th place, immediately above Getafe.
Third-place Villarreal, Barcelona’s next league opponent, can restore a three-point gap to fourth-place Atletico Madrid if it beats Valencia at home later Sunday. Atletico beat Espanyol 4-2 at home on Saturday.
