14th March, 2012
John Mikel Obi has warned Napoli they face a Champions League ‘war’ at Stamford Bridge tonight.
The Italians are trying to defend a 3-1 lead in the last 16 tie.
But the Nigerian midfielder, Mikel declared: “It will be a football war on the pitch in the second leg.
“We did our best in the first leg but need to go the extra mile to beat them and move to the next stage. We will go all out from the first whistle.
“This is a trophy we want at all costs. We cannot afford to be eliminated now.”
Napoli captain Paolo Cannavaro knows his side are in for a hard time.
Cannavaro, 30, said: “We expect a footballing battle. We will have to struggle and suffer. We’re focused and ready because we want to continue living this Champions League dream.”
With the hosts needing to pour forward to get back in the match, Napoli will look to pick them off on the counter-attack.
“We will have to be balanced, obviously, because their threat on counter-attacking is very good and they have some players that can hurt you,” interim Chelsea manager Roberto Di Matteo said. “When they come here on Wednesday at Stamford Bridge, they will play against a good team, a great team, and we will make their life difficult … we have to believe that we can turn this around.”