All eyes will be on Anfield on Tuesday as Liverpool hosts Napoli in the final round of Group A in the UEFA Champions League. Both teams secured their advancement to the knockout stage early, but the competition for the group’s top spot is still fierce between them.
Napoli currently sits at the top with a perfect score of 15 points, achieving five consecutive wins, including a victory over Liverpool with a score of 4-1 in their first meeting. Meanwhile, Liverpool is in second place with 12 points, followed by Ajax with 3 points and Glasgow Rangers at the bottom of the group with no points so far.
If Liverpool wins against Napoli in tomorrow’s match, both clubs will have 15 points, and the head-to-head results will be examined to determine the group leader.
For Liverpool to claim the top spot, they need a "crazy scenario." Since Napoli won their first match against Liverpool quite decisively 4-1, if the English side were to win for example 3-0 in tomorrow's game, both teams would be tied on points and goals scored in their direct encounters.
In that case, the goal difference in the group as a whole would be considered, where Napoli currently leads with a +16 goal difference compared to Liverpool's +9. Liverpool would need to win by a four-goal margin to surpass Napoli in direct encounter goal difference and thus top the group. However, this scenario remains very challenging given Napoli's strong performance and Liverpool's struggles this season.
Nevertheless, Liverpool's chances of shaking things up and claiming the top spot in the group remain theoretically possible. The group winner will enjoy the advantage of facing a second-placed team from one of the other seven groups in the round of 16, while the runner-up will play against a group winner.
