Napoli were knocked out of the Champions League on Wednesday after a 2-3 defeat at home to Chelsea, with Joao Pedro scoring twice in the second half to seal the Blues’ place in the last 16.
Chelsea’s first away win of the season left Chelsea sixth in the league stage standings with 16 points, while Serie A champions Napoli finished in 30th with eight points.
The top eight teams will advance directly to the last sixteen, and those seeded from ninth to 24th will advance to the two-legged play-offs for the remaining eight places.
Chelsea had already secured at least a place in the play-offs, while Napoli needed a win to give themselves a realistic chance of survival, but fell short despite being a goal behind and leading at half-time.
Enzo Fernandez put Chelsea ahead in the 19th minute with a penalty before Napoli responded in 10 minutes with two goals from Antonio Vergara and Rasmus Hojlund.
Napoli took their foot off the gas after half-time and Pedro leveled for Chelsea in the 61st minute before scoring the winner eight minutes from time.
Injury-hit Napoli had just five outfield players on the bench, including two youth players with no senior experience and former Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku, who has 11 minutes of action to his name this season.
«I don’t think a situation like this has happened to any team in the world. Today we have 13 outfield players,» said Napoli boss and former Chelsea manager Antonio Conte. Amazon Prime before kick-off.
PEDRO’S BRILLIANCE CHANGES THE GAME
Chelsea were awarded a penalty after Juan Jesus handled the ball in defense of a free kick and Fernandez fired into the bottom corner from the spot.
Napoli pushed forward in search of an equalizer and Vergara scored his first goal for Napoli in the 33rd minute.
He collected a pass from Mathias Olivera, skipped past Moses Caicedo’s challenge on his way into the area, where he turned away from Wesley Fofana before sending his low shot into the far corner.
Napoli, the hungrier-looking side and with all the momentum, hit the front three minutes after half-time. Olivera played a pass across the area for Hojlund to sweep home from just outside the six-yard area.
A moment of individual brilliance brought Chelsea level. Pedro collected the ball outside the area, turned his marker and unleashed from distance with a swerving strike that found the top corner.
Napoli sent Lukaku on late, but it was Chelsea who scored again. Pedro entered the area solo and drilled his shot into the net.
Published on January 29, 2026
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2)/Wellington-Delano-Dickens-012826-b661fc1580db4bcb936d6676c6205b6d.jpg?w=238&resize=238,178&ssl=1 "Padre acusado de asesinar a 4 niños tenía citas mientras sus cuerpos se descomponían")
