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Since 2006, that is, exactly 17 years ago, Italy did not put three teams in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.
This year three of the best eight European teams fly the tricolor flag.
Seventeen years of recess in which 'Calcio' was losing strength and weight on the European scene, with the exception of the 'Champions' of Inter in 2010 and the two finals lost by 'Juve' in 2015 and 2016, against Barcelona and Real Madrid. Twelve years it has cost him to return to Inter, eleven to Milan, while Napoli is there for the first time in its history.
But in this edition, which curiously does not coincide with the best level of either Inter or Milan, is serving as a springboard for Italian football that little by little is recovering lost ground.
And it is that Napoli has returned to focus on Serie A with its total football; and, in Europe, Italy is positioned as the country that contributes the most teams, ahead of England (Chelsea, Manchester City), Spain (Real Madrid), Portugal (Benfica) and Germany (Bayern Munich).
Real Madrid and Napoli eliminated Liverpool and Frankfurt, respectively, and took tickets to the quarterfinals of the Champions League. The Spanish won 1-0 (6-2 on aggregate), while the Italians won 3-0 (5-0 on aggregate).
Real Madrid eliminated Liverpool and Napoli left Frankfurt out.
Real Madrid and Napoli eliminated Liverpool and Frankfurt, respectively, and took tickets to the quarterfinals of the Champions League. The Spanish won 1-0 (6-2 on aggregate), while the Italians won 3-0 (5-0 on aggregate).
Madrid, the top winner of the Champions League with 14 titles, defeated Liverpool 1-0, with a goal from Frenchman Karim Benzema (ST 33m), and closed the series 6-2 in their favor at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.
Napoli, with the entry of striker Giovanni Simeone with ten minutes to go, beat Frankfurt 3-0 with goals from Nigerian Victor Osimhen (PT 45+2m and 8m) and Pole Piotr Zielinski (ST19m, penalty), in the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples.
The Italian league leader, who had the lead in the series due to the 2-0 win in Germany, completed a historic event with his first pass to the Champions League quarterfinals.
Liverpool tried to reverse the series, but Madrid did not give rise to that illusion. The team led by the German Jürgen Klopp could not convert the few situations that he had at the feet of the Uruguayan Darwin Núñez and the Egyptian Mohamed Salah during the first stage, and in the second half they lacked ideas.
Real Madrid, with the power of their individualities, put the visit in trouble with the appearances of the Brazilian Vincius Jr. and the Croatian Luka Modric, while the Frenchman Eduardo Camavinga was one of the most prominent in the team led by the Italian Carlo Ancelotti.
Benzema, scorer of the last edition, reached his third goal so far in the cup.
The "merengue" team once again embittered Liverpool, a rival they beat in the previous final with 1-0, a goal scored by Vinicius Jr., and in the 2017/2018 season with the 3-1 that featured the Welshman Gareth Bale, in the night for the oblivion of the German goalkeeper Loris Karius.
Neapolitan strength.
For its part, Napoli had Osimhen as a great figure. The Nigerian attacker signed two goals for a win without problems.
Osimhen ratified his good moment with the tenth goal in his last 10 games with Napoli. In addition, he scored his fourth goal in this Champions League and has already accumulated 23 out of 28 games so far this season.
In Frankfurt, meanwhile, Colombian Rafael Santos Borré started, while Argentine Lucas Alario took a place on the substitute bench. Both played for River Plate, although in different seasons.
The previous game was tinged with violence with the confrontation between the fans of both teams, who caused serious incidents in the southern Italian city.
A large group of "ultras" from Napoli went out in search of the 600 Germans, who traveled despite the ban on entering the stadium and threatened to vandalize a Diego Maradona mural. The police tried to prevent the crossing of the barrabravas and "an urban guerrilla" broke out in the streets of Naples.
Eintracht fans clashed with security forces and even set fire to a police car, the newspaper La Repubblica reported. The clashes caused "terror" among the citizens who had to take refuge in the buildings and in a church in the area.
In the first leg in Germany there were also incidents and the Italian authorities decided to veto the sale of tickets for residents of Frankfurt.
Those classified to the quarterfinals are: Real Madrid, Napoli, Manchester City, Inter, Benfica, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Milan.
The draw for the Champions League quarterfinals will take place on Friday, March 17, at the home of European football in Nyon, Switzerland.
The first legs of the quarterfinals will take place between Tuesday 11 and Wednesday 12 April, and the second legs between 18 and 19 April. The semifinals will be on May 9/10 and May 16/17, and the final on Saturday June 10.
Napoli, with the entry of striker Giovanni Simeone with ten minutes to go, beat Frankfurt 3-0 with goals from Nigerian Victor Osimhen (PT 45+2m and 8m) and Pole Piotr Zielinski (ST19m, penalty), in the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples.
The Italian league leader, who had the lead in the series due to the 2-0 win in Germany, completed a historic event with his first pass to the Champions League quarterfinals.
Liverpool tried to reverse the series, but Madrid did not give rise to that illusion. The team led by the German Jürgen Klopp could not convert the few situations that he had at the feet of the Uruguayan Darwin Núñez and the Egyptian Mohamed Salah during the first stage, and in the second half they lacked ideas.
Real Madrid, with the power of their individualities, put the visit in trouble with the appearances of the Brazilian Vincius Jr. and the Croatian Luka Modric, while the Frenchman Eduardo Camavinga was one of the most prominent in the team led by the Italian Carlo Ancelotti.
Benzema, scorer of the last edition, reached his third goal so far in the cup.
The "merengue" team once again embittered Liverpool, a rival they beat in the previous final with 1-0, a goal scored by Vinicius Jr., and in the 2017/2018 season with the 3-1 that featured the Welshman Gareth Bale, in the night for the oblivion of the German goalkeeper Loris Karius.
For its part, Napoli had Osimhen as a great figure. The Nigerian attacker signed two goals for a win without problems.
Osimhen ratified his good moment with the tenth goal in his last 10 games with Napoli. In addition, he scored his fourth goal in this Champions League and has already accumulated 23 out of 28 games so far this season.
In Frankfurt, meanwhile, Colombian Rafael Santos Borré started, while Argentine Lucas Alario took a place on the substitute bench. Both played for River Plate, although in different seasons.
The previous game was tinged with violence with the confrontation between the fans of both teams, who caused serious incidents in the southern Italian city.
A large group of "ultras" from Napoli went out in search of the 600 Germans, who traveled despite the ban on entering the stadium and threatened to vandalize a Diego Maradona mural. The police tried to prevent the crossing of the barrabravas and "an urban guerrilla" broke out in the streets of Naples.
Eintracht fans clashed with security forces and even set fire to a police car, the newspaper La Repubblica reported. The clashes caused "terror" among the citizens who had to take refuge in the buildings and in a church in the area.
In the first leg in Germany there were also incidents and the Italian authorities decided to veto the sale of tickets for residents of Frankfurt.
Those classified to the quarterfinals are: Real Madrid, Napoli, Manchester City, Inter, Benfica, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Milan.
Source images: Twitter UEFA Champions League.