Spanish club Barcelona drew 1-1 with Italian side Napoli in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League playoff on Thursday. Despite Barcelona's aggressive start, Napoli struck first through their Polish star Piotr Zielinski in the 29th minute. However, Barcelona equalized in the 59th minute with a penalty from Ferran Torres.
The outcome of the tie will be decided in the return leg, which will take place at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in Naples next Thursday. Both teams must win to progress to the Round of 16, following UEFA’s decision to eliminate the away goals rule from European competition for the first time this season. Previously, if two teams were tied on aggregate after both matches, the team with the greater number of away goals would advance.
Barcelona moved to play in the Europa League after an early exit from the Champions League this season, finishing third in their group and failing to reach the knockout stages of Europe’s premier club competition for the first time in several years. Meanwhile, Napoli was forced into the playoff after finishing second in their Europa League group, behind Russia's Spartak Moscow, which qualified directly for the Round of 16 by topping the group.
