Napoli can qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League by beating Villarreal on Wednesday evening and they have to be fancied to do so.
Manchester City fans may be hopeful of making the last 16 of the Champions League but, in truth, they don't deserve to finish ahead of Napoli, who head to El Madrigal on Wednesday night second in Group A and needing only a win to ensure that they are present in the draw for the knockout stages in their first season in the competition.
Napoli will fancy their chances in Spain after watching Villarreal get destroyed by Manchester City in their most recent European match in front of their home fans. They have been no better domestically since then and have lost their last three games in all competitions, including a meek 1-0 defeat to Racing Santander at the weekend.
Villarreal will be buoyed by the fact that no Italian team has ever won at El Madrigal. That statistic is, however, from an era when El Submarine Amarillo were far better than they are at the moment and the absence of Villarreal's own Italian star, Giuseppe Rossi, means that the record could well be broken this season.
Edinson Cavani and Marek Hamsik are simply too good at the moment for the Villarreal defence to deal with and the home attack won't worry the Napoli back line. The difference in class was noticeable when the Italians won 2-0 in Naples in September and they can confirm that on Wednesday.
