As our Champions League tie switches from the Bay of Naples to the River Thames, club historian Rick Glanvill and club statistician Paul Dutton are return-leg ready. Chelsea aim tonight to become the 27th Champions League side to recover from a first-leg loss in order to enter the quarter-/semi-final draw to be made on Friday.

The Blues may need to win 2-0, or by more than two goals, for that to happen. The only alternative would be a reverse of the 3-1 scoreline in Italy and a penalty shootout victory. Happily, the club has the momentum generated by successive wins to take into this crucial match.

Back in 2004 after a similar result in Monaco the Blues blazed back at the Bridge to achieve a tie-winning 2-0, only for a goal from a blatant handball by Hugo Ibarra - missed by officials - to turn the tide.

While opponents Napoli have never surrendered a two-goal lead from the first leg in any Uefa competition, they have been beaten four times in return matches having won the opening encounter.

The azzurri coach Walter Mazzarri - whose matchday ban was lifted yesterday - will face a different opponent to the man who was in the Chelsea dugout at San Paolo stadium.

The Blues now have Roberto Di Matteo in charge and both he and one of assistants, Eddie Newton, played in a successful Uefa Cup-Winners' Cup campaign in 1997/88, including a stirring comeback against Italian opposition.

Under the new interim regime Chelsea have back-to-back cup and league victories without conceding and Mazzarri will find it difficult to predict the Chelsea team and line-up tonight. He will also know that Chelsea fans will be vociferous in their backing of the Blues.

Fernando Torres made his first appearance in the Champions League during the 2007/08 season. Liverpool made the last four over Inter Milan and Arsenal, with Torres grabbing a goal at San Siro and Anfield, but were beaten by Chelsea in an all-English semi-final.

During the 2008/09 season Liverpool topped their group. The Reds then knocked-out Real Madrid in the last 16, with Torres also scoring a goal at Anfield. The Merseysiders however went out in the next round after a 7-5 aggregate defeat to Chelsea.

Napoli are in good form. They have risen back to fourth in Serie A having slumped to seventh after the winter break. Three matches since our meeting on 21 February have produced three successes, culminating last Friday in the morale-boosting 6-3 dispatch of lowly Cagliari.

Never mind the six goals for, though, let's consider the three against, conceded at home, in a hat-trick for Joaquín Larrivey. The tall, powerful centre-forward's treble came entirely from headers, food for thought for our biggest aerial threats such as Didier Drogba, John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic - especially as this was no one-off. Nearly a third of the league goals Napoli have conceded have come from an opponent's head. Set plays could prove decisive this evening.

Progress in this competition, especially from the difficult deficit that has to be overcome, would be a wonderful achievement, of course. Chelsea would be flag-bearers for the capital and the nation in Europe's elite competition.

Twenty ties in Champions League history have been decided on away goals, including six where the triumphant team lost the first leg.

Only six two-legged Champions League ties have been decided on spot-kicks. Neither Chelsea nor Napoli had enjoyed great success from 12 yards this season.

If the score after 90 minutes is 3-1 to Chelsea then extra time will be played and if necessary penalties. The away goals rule applies so any other score will result in the game ending after normal time.

Chelsea have been victorious in two of the last four penalty shoot-outs faced.


- Match preview by chelseafc.com