Uncharted territory for Napoli and Utrecht

SSC Napoli will make their debut in the group stage of a UEFA club competition as FC Utrecht make a first competitive trip to Italy in their UEFA Europa League Group K opener.

Previous meetings
• The teams are meeting for the first time in UEFA club competition, and this is also Napoli's first game against a Dutch club.

• Utrecht's four previous games against Italian opposition – Hellas-Verona FC and Parma FC – have ended W0 D2 L2 (W0 D1 L1 away).

Match background
• Napoli are playing their first game in the group stage of a major UEFA club competition.

• Napoli have won their last four European home games, with their previous UEFA club competition defeat at San Paolo a 1-0 loss to Eintracht Frankfurt in the 1994/95 UEFA Cup third round.

• Utrecht will look to improve on their only previous group stage campaign when they lost all four of their games in the 2004/05 UEFA Cup.

• A 3-1 victory at FC Luzern in this season's UEFA Europa League third qualifying round is Utrecht's only win in their last eight UEFA club competition games on their travels. Five of those games ended in defeat.

Team facts
• A midfielder who spent most of his playing career outside Serie A, Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri worked his way up as a coach, making a major breakthrough by leading AS Livorno Calcio to promotion to the top division in 2003/04. Spells at Reggina Calcio and UC Sampdoria followed before he took the Napoli job in October 2009.

• Ton du Chatinier represented Utrecht as a defender for the whole of his ten-year professional career, and has not strayed too far from the club since, serving as a youth coach, caretaker manager and assistant boss before being given sole command at the end of 2008.