After the painful penalty shootout defeat in last season’s Champions League final, Arsenal now begin their quest to go one step further this campaign.
The Gunners have hit the ground running in 2026/27, beating Manchester City in the Community Shield before winning their first three Premier League games.
Napoli won 2-0 away to Genoa in their opening game but have since lost against Como and Inter Milan, leaving them 12th in Serie A.
Napoli v Arsenal kick-off time
Napoli v Arsenal kicks off at 8pm BST on Wednesday, September 9 at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Napoli v Arsenal how to watch
The game will be shown live in the UK via TNT Sports 1, with coverage starting from 7pm.
TalkSPORT 2 will provide full match commentary.
Napoli team news
Napoli are without Scott McTominay after the former Manchester United midfielder underwent corrective surgery for a minor heart issue.
He is expected to return to action after the international break in early October.
Defenders Alessandro Buongiorno and Davide Marianucci remain sidelined with knee injuries and Benoit Badiashile could make his full debut after arriving on loan from Chelsea.
Giovane is recovering from surgery on a groin injury, while Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and David Neres have both missed training and will face late fitness tests.
Kevin De Bruyne was a thorn in Arsenal’s side during his Manchester City career, and the midfielder could make his first start of the season after coming off the bench in their first three Serie A games.
Rasmus Hojlund has eight goals in 13 Champions League games and will continue to lead the line for Napoli.
Arsenal team news
Cristhian Mosquera missed the win over Chelsea with a minor muscle injury and looks set to sit out the trip to Napoli, so Ezri Konsa will keep his place alongside Gabriel at the heart of the Arsenal defence.
Jurrien Timber is yet to feature this season after undergoing minor surgery over the summer, but he has been training with the first team and could be named in the matchday squad.
Fellow defender William Saliba remains sidelined and is still a number of weeks away from returning from his back injury.
Bruno Guimaraes has had a couple of fitness issues in the opening weeks of the season and remained an unused substitute throughout the win over Chelsea.
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But the Brazil international should be in contention to start against Napoli, with Myles Lewis-Skelly potentially dropping to the bench.
The front four of Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Christos Tzolis and Kai Havertz are expected to start for the fourth game in a row.
Napoli v Arsenal odds
Arsenal are favourites at 7/9 to start their Champions League league phase with a win.
Napoli are 21/5 to secure all three points, while The Draw is 14/5.
In the outright betting, Arsenal are 6/1 joint-second favourites to lift the trophy behind Paris Saint-Germain.
Napoli v Arsenal predictions
A trip to the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium represents a difficult opening game for Arsenal, with Napoli losing just three of their last 23 home games in the Champions League.
But two of those defeats were against English opposition, losing 4-2 at home to Manchester City in 2017/18 and 3-2 to Chelsea last season.
The Partenopei also come into this game after surrendering a two‑goal lead at the San Siro to make it back‑to‑back Serie A defeats.
Unlike their opponents, Arsenal are in great form and they also won all eight of their matches in last season’s Champions League league phase, including a 3-1 win over Inter on their last trip to Italy.
Napoli will be buoyed by their passionate home support and they tend to find the back of the net in most games, but the Gunners consistently find a way to win and should bring all three points back to London.
That leads us to back an Arsenal win and Both Teams to Score at 14/5. A 2-1 Arsenal victory is available at 15/2.
Havertz has scored in each of his last three away games in the Champions League, netting against Bayer Leverkusen and Sporting before getting the opening goal in the final.
The Germany international has also started this season in strong form and is 2/1 to score against Napoli.
De Bruyne has been directly involved in 12 goals in his last 17 starts against Arsenal in all competitions, with eight goals and four assists.
The 35-year-old is still capable of producing moments of magic and is 23/10 to score or assist against the Gunners.
