The match of Champions League between Napoli and Eintracht Frankfurt will play as scheduled on Monday, November 4, at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, but without German fans in the stands. UEFA has rejected the Frankfurt club's request to move the match to a neutral venue or, alternatively, to play it behind closed doors, following the travel ban imposed by Italian authorities on their supporters.
The German club had justified the request by citing "security and organizational deficiencies" in Naples, recalling what happened last season, when clashes between ultras had alarmed both the Italian and German authorities.
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A decision that the German club didn't like. “The totally different treatment that various countries and federations reserve for high-risk matches has now become a problem for European football culture and for the integrity of competitions.”, thundered Philipp Reschke, member of the Eintracht board. “It is unacceptable that in many countries visiting fans are welcome, while in others – such as France and Italy – they are simply excluded by the authorities, even under equal conditions.”
UEFA, while reiterating its decision, assured that the issue will be addressed more carefully in the coming months, evaluating possible changes to the regulations. “Despite the irritation at the circumstances to which we are once again subjected — Reschke commented again — we consider this an encouraging sign." Meanwhile, in Naples, attention remains high: the match against Eintracht Frankfurt will be a tight one, but the Maradona will once again be a Champions League stadium, albeit without some of its fans.
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