Napoli reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the first time

In the first leg at the opponent's field, Napoli won 2-0. Kvicha Kvaratskhelia missed the penalty, but Victor Osimhen and Giovanni Di Lorenzo both scored. They have an added advantage in the second leg, when Frankfurt lost its brightest star - striker Kolo Muani - due to a suspension.

In the first half, the two teams continuously attacked each other's goal. Matteo Politano and Kvaratskhelia three times tested goalkeeper Kevin Trapp. Meanwhile, Frankfurt responded with a header from Rafael Borre and a drop from Mario Gotze.

In the second minute of injury time, Napoli went ahead. Politano crosses the wing to let Osimhen head the opener.

After the break, the home team continued to attack effectively. In the 53rd minute, Osimhen cushioned the ball to make it 2-0 from Di Lorenzo's horizontal stretch. He became the first Nigerian striker to score twice in a Champions League knockout match.

Napoli continued to press even after leading 2-0 in the second leg and 4-0 in the end. 64 minutes, the referee awarded the home team a penalty after Sow fouled Zielinski. It was Zielinski who stood up and took the penalty to determine the victory.

This is the first time Napoli has reached the quarter-finals of the C1/Champions League Cup in its 118-year history. When the legendary Diego Maradona, Napoli twice attended the C1 Cup: losing to Real in the first round of the 1987-1988 season and losing to Spartak Moscow in the 1/8 round of the 1990-1991 season. They entered the Champions League seven times between 2011-2020, including three times in the 1/8 round, three times in the group stage and once in the preliminary round.

Napoli's victory over Frankfurt on the evening of March 15 also helps Italy become the country with the most representatives in the quarterfinals this season. Before that, Milan and Inter won tickets. This is the first time Italy has three representatives in the quarter-finals of the Champions League since the 2005-2006 season. The common point of these three teams is not to concede a goal in the 1/8 round.

He contributed two representatives in the quarterfinals this season (Man City, Chelsea). The countries that still have one representative are Spain (Real), Portugal (Benfica) and Germany (Bayern).