With Juventus representing Serie A well so far after defeating reigning Champions League winners Real Madrid 2-1 in their semi-final first leg, all eyes of calcio followers will now be on Napoli as they attempt to take one hopeful step closer to the Europa League final in Warsaw. Although the Partenopei have had their ups and downs domestically, they have done excellent in Europe's second tier competition, including shocking Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg 4-1 on the road in their quarter-finals first leg last month.
Rafa Benitez's men have only lost once in their Europa League campaign - a surprise 2-0 reversal to Swiss side Young Boys in the group stages, but since then, they have not looked back. Their 2-2 draw with Wolfsburg was the first time they had conceded more than one goal since their October loss, and overall they have outscored their opponents by a total of 14 to four since the knock-out rounds commenced. In total, they have scored 25 goals in the Europa League, the most out of any team so far in this season's tournament.
Heading into this match, the confidence of the Azzurri will be sky-high after easily brushing past AC Milan with goals from Gonzalo Higuain, Marek Hamsik, and new signing Manolo Gabbiadini. However, Benitez, who is seeking his fourth European title - having the Champions League with Liverpool and the Europa League with Valencia and Chelsea - feels that their upcoming opponents Dnipro have the potential to cause them a lot more worry than the Rossoneri.
#Benitez: il Dnipro è in semifinale con merito, non è conosciuta come altre ma ha giocatori di livello assoluto
— Official SSC Napoli (@sscnapoli) May 6, 2015
"Dnipro is in the semi-finals on merit. They may not be as well known as others but they have top-level players"
Indeed, the Ukrainian outfit are not well known to fans outside their country, but they enjoy a pretty impressive record, with just two losses out of their last 17 matches, and Myron Markevych's side successfully dealy with Olympiacos, Ajax and Club Brugge en route to securing their spot in the final four.
Although Benitez's future is up for speculation, he was quick to dismiss the rumours as Napoli, who have won one Europa League title back in 1989, seek to make what would be their first final appearance in nearly three decades:
#Benitez: il Presidente sa le mie idee e ne parlerà con il mio procuratore ma dopo 26 anni la cosa più importante è questa semifinale
— Official SSC Napoli (@sscnapoli) May 6, 2015
"The President knows my plans and he will be speaking about it with my agent. After 26 years [since our last final appearance], the most important thing is [getting through] this semi-final"
Should he manage to lift the trophy in Poland's capital, Benitez would be in some esteemed company. Only Italian tactician Giovanni Trapattoni has won three Europa League titles. The Spaniard also has a good record at home in European competition, with 20 wins and four draws in his last 24 home games. All in all, Napoli are unbeaten in their last 12 home games in Europe, with nine wins and three draws.
Tonight's meeting between Napoli and Dnipro will be the third time the two sides face off; the last two matches were during the 2012/2013 group stages of the Europa League. Dnipro ended up winning the first game 3-1 at their home ground, only for Edinson Cavani to score a poker as the Partenopei came back to win the re-match 4-2 at the Stadio San Paolo.
Whilst the Partenopei's home record is impressive, the same cannot be said about the Ukrainians on the road. They have only won one out of their last ten European away matches, drawing the other four and losing five.
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