Eintracht Frankfurt and Napoli will both be looking to draw first blood in their Champions League last-16 showdown when they meet for the first leg at Deutsche Bank Park on Tuesday night.
While there are higher-profile fixtures taking place in this round of Europe's premier club competition, this contest could yet prove to be a dark horse as the tie of the round with both sides going into this first leg in good goalscoring form.
Some of Europe's most in-form players will also be on show, with Frankfurt's Randal Kolo Muani starring in the Bundesliga this season and Napoli duo Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Victor Osimhen leading the charge to a first Scudetto since the days of Diego Maradona.
The contest will be Frankfurt's first taste of the knockout rounds in the Champions League era, although they do have substantial European pedigree having won the Europa League last season and famously reached the European Cup final in 1960, when they were on the end of a hammering at the hands of the great Real Madrid team of Alfredo Di Stefano and Ferenc Puskas as Hampden Park.
Neither side has enjoyed sustained success in Europe throughout the years, though, meaning that they have only met on two previous occasions ahead of this enticing encounter.
Both of those came in the last 16 of the UEFA Cup in the 1994-95 season, and it is Frankfurt who boast an unblemished record from those games.
As on this occasion, the German outfit hosted the first of those matches in November 1994, and it was a night to forget for their Italian visitors.
Future Ballon d'Or winner Fabio Cannavaro was sent off for Napoli shortly before half time thanks to a second bookable offence, before a Renato Buso own goal 10 minutes after the restart condemned the visitors to defeat.
The return fixture in Naples was also decided by just a solitary goal as Jupp Heynckes's Frankfurt side safely secured their passage through to the next round courtesy of Ralf Falkenmayer's 54th-minute strike.
Frankfurt do have a longer history against Italian teams in general, losing just two of their 11 such matches including those two previous meetings with Napoli.
Six of those 11 games have ended in victory, while they are unbeaten in their last four outings against Serie A clubs stretching back to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Palermo in the 2006-07 UEFA Cup group stage.
Napoli, meanwhile, have won on their last two trips to Germany, having previously failed to win any of their first 10 such fixtures, drawing five and losing five.
The Serie A leaders' most recent away game against German opposition came in February 2018, when they beat RB Leipzig 2-0.
EINTRACHT FRANKFURT VS. NAPOLI HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
Frankfurt wins: 2
Napoli wins: 0
Draws: 0
Frankfurt goals: 2
Napoli goals: 0
MATCH HISTORY
November 24, 1994: Eintracht Frankfurt 1-0 Napoli (UEFA Cup)
December 7, 1994: Napoli 0-1 Eintracht Frankfurt (UEFA Cup)
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Barney Corkhill
