Man City vs. Napoli brings Conte’s first Champions League match in over 900 days

Antonio Conte is preparing to take part in his first Champions League match in over 900 days as his Napoli side take on Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City at The Etihad to kick off their 2025-26 campaign. 

Conte returns to Champions League football after 925 days

Conte has not managed a Champions League match in 925 days, dating back to March 8, 2023, when he was still in charge of Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur. 

That match, in the 2022-23 Round of 16 stage, ended in a 0-0 draw at Tottenham Hotspur stadium, which saw Conte eliminated after a 1-0 defeat by Milan in San Siro in the first leg. Brahim Diaz was the tie’s only goalscorer on that occasion. 

Conte would go on to leave Tottenham by the end of March 2023, and did not return to club management until the beginning of the 2024-25 campaign, when he took over as head coach of Napoli. 

Napoli were not involved in any European competition in 2024-25, following a 10th place finish in the 2023-24 Serie A season. That ended up playing to the club’s advantage, as they went on to beat Inter to the Scudetto on the final day of the 2024-25 season. 

Winning the league has brought the return of Champions League football to the Stadio Maradona, and to Conte as well. 

The Italian tactician currently boasts a record of 15 wins, 14 draws and 13 losses from his 42 matches in the competition to date. The furthest he has gone in the Champions League is to the quarter-finals, during his first season at Juventus in 2012-13. 

Encouragingly for Napoli, Conte also boasts an impressive record against Man City head coach Guardiola: Four wins from their previous seven meetings to be precise.

You can follow the action from Man City vs. Napoli as it unfolds on the Football Italia Liveblog.