Victor Osimhen double leads Napoli past Eintracht Frankfurt into last eight

Napoli cruised into the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a comfortable 5-0 aggregate victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Victor Osimhen hit a brace as the hosts won the second leg 3-0 in Naples as three Italian clubs reached the last eight for the first time since 2006.

Trouble in the streets of the city between supporters marred the evening but, on the pitch, it was one-way traffic.

Napoli were always favourites to advance after a 2-0 win in Germany and Victor Osimhen’s fine header on the stroke of half-time sent them on their way.

A close-range finish from Osimhen after the restart all but secured safe passage before Piotr Zielinksi won and scored a spot-kick to seal victory for the Serie A leaders.

Footage was circulated on social media of trouble in Naples before Wednesday evening’s game at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, where supporters from Frankfurt had been banned from attending.

Videos showed officers wearing riot gear responding to missiles, including flares, being hurled by individuals among a crowd estimated at several hundred people.

Reports from local media suggested Napoli’s ultras had also been involved in the violence, during which several cars were said to have been set on fire.

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Le immagini che arrivano live da piazza del Gesù a Napoli.

Gli ultras tedeschi stanno danneggiato diversi mezzi delle forze dell’ordine. La tensione resta altissima in attesa del calcio d’inizio.#Napoli #Sportitalia pic.twitter.com/3S9v7rosbC

— Sportitalia (@tvdellosport) March 15, 2023

Fans of Eintracht had been banned from attending the game after a series of arrests were made following unrest before the reverse fixture in Germany last month. The Bundesliga club would ordinarily have been entitled to about 2,700 tickets for the game in Italy.

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A statement on the club’s website on 7 March said: “Eintracht Frankfurt was informed late last night by Uefa that the Italian ministry of the interior is this morning going to issue an injunction against SSC Napoli, whereby the club is prohibited from selling tickets to Eintracht Frankfurt supporters for the Uefa Champions League round of 16 second leg on Wednesday 15 March.

“This would also include the total away allocation of 2,700 tickets, of which 2,400 are in the away section, which Eintracht Frankfurt is entitled to under Uefa regulations.”

However, some fans still made the trip amid reports that followers of Serie A club Atalanta had joined up with them and bought tickets on their behalf.

source: theguardian.com