NAPLES – Napoli defeated Eintracht Frankfurt 3-0 on Wednesday to advance to the Champions League quarterfinals for the first time in their history, giving Italy three teams in the final eight.
Napoli advanced 5-0 on aggregate after Victor Osimhen scored a goal in each half and Piotr Zielinski converted a penalty in the second half.
Three Italian teams have reached the quarterfinals of Europe’s premier club competition for the first time since 2006.
There are no more restrictions on teams from the same country playing each other, so Napoli could face Inter Milan or AC Milan in the draw on Friday. Bayern Munich, Benfica, Chelsea, Manchester City, and Real Madrid are the other teams in the final eight.
In the other match on Wednesday, Real Madrid defeated Liverpool 1-0 to advance 6-2 on aggregate.
Napoli came into the match at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona full of confidence, having a 2-0 lead from the first leg in Germany and appearing to be a lock for the Serie A title.
There was trouble in Naples during the day as 600 Frankfurt fans descended on the city despite being denied entry to the game, but there did not appear to be any further incidents at the stadium.
Napoli pushed hard for the game-winning goal, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who has been a revelation this season, had a couple of chances in the first half, but Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp kept his team in the game.
In first-half stoppage time, Stanislav Lobotka collected a loose ball and passed it to Matteo Politano, who whipped in a cross from the right for a towering header by Osimhen.
Osimhen, who also scored in the first leg, doubled his tally eight minutes after the break, tapping in a cross from Giovanni Di Lorenzo after good work by Kvaratskhelia in the buildup.
In the 64th minute, Zieliski was tripped by Djibril Sow, and the midfielder dusted himself down to drill the resulting penalty down the middle.
