Kevin De Bruyne will make a swift and emotional return to the Etihad Stadium on Thursday night as his new Napoli side visit Manchester City in their opening Champions League League Phase fixture. The Belgian playmaker only departed City a few months ago after a decade of success, and now faces his former teammates in one of the most eye-catching ties of matchday one.

City come into this clash on the back of a much-needed boost, having thrashed Manchester United 3-0 in the derby last weekend. Goals from Phil Foden and two from Erling Haaland ensured the champions bounced back from successive defeats to Tottenham and Brighton before the international break. Pep Guardiola will hope that result sparks consistency as his side seek a stronger European campaign than last term, when they underwhelmed in the League Phase and were knocked out by Real Madrid in the playoffs. Still, the Etihad has been a fortress for City in this competition, with the club unbeaten in 21 home group-stage or league-phase fixtures, winning 18 of them. Haaland, who has scored 49 goals in 48 Champions League games, will be eager to become the fastest player ever to hit the half-century mark in the competition.

Napoli, under Antonio Conte, have started their Serie A title defence in perfect fashion with three wins from three, including a commanding 3-1 success at Fiorentina last weekend where both De Bruyne and Rasmus Højlund found the net. Conte has made Napoli a balanced and disciplined outfit, with a mix of experience and fresh arrivals boosting their ambitions on the European stage. However, history is against them when traveling to England, as Napoli have never won away to an English club in European competition, losing nine times in 12 visits.

Both managers have injury concerns to navigate. Guardiola is without Mateo Kovačić, Omar Marmoush, Rayan Aït-Nouri and Rayan Cherki, while John Stones is a doubt. Conte, meanwhile, must cope without Romelu Lukaku, Alex Meret, Amir Rrahmani and others, though he still boasts a strong XI led by De Bruyne, Scott McTominay, and Højlund in attack.

De Bruyne’s return adds extra spice to an already enticing clash, and the Belgian could well inspire Napoli to threaten his old club. Yet City’s home strength and Haaland’s relentless scoring record give them the edge.

凯文·德布鲁因将在周四晚上迅速而激动地回到阿提哈德球场，他的新那不勒斯将在欧冠联赛的首场比赛中做客曼城。这名比利时中场几个月前才离开曼城，他已经在曼城取得了十年的成功，现在他将面对他的前队友，这是比赛日最引人注目的比赛之一。

曼城在上周末的德比战中以3比0大胜曼联，他们在这场比赛中得到了急需的提振。菲尔·福登的进球和厄林·哈兰德的两粒进球确保了冠军在国际比赛日之前从接连输给热刺和布莱顿的比赛中恢复过来。瓜迪奥拉希望这一结果能激发球队的稳定性，因为他的球队正在寻求一个比上赛季更强大的欧洲之旅，当时他们在联赛阶段表现平平，在季后赛中被皇家马德里淘汰。尽管如此，阿提哈德球场一直是曼城在这项赛事中的堡垒，俱乐部在小组赛或联赛阶段的21场主场比赛中保持不败，其中18场获胜。哈兰德已经在48场欧冠比赛中打进49球，他渴望成为欧冠历史上最快打进50球的球员。

在孔蒂的带领下，那不勒斯以三战三胜的完美方式开始了他们的意甲卫冕之旅，其中包括上周末3-1大胜佛罗伦萨的比赛，德布鲁因和拉斯穆斯赫隆德都在比赛中破门。孔蒂让那不勒斯成为一支平衡而有纪律的球队，经验丰富的球员和新援的加入增强了他们在欧洲赛场上的雄心。然而，历史不利于他们前往英格兰，因为那不勒斯从未在欧洲比赛中赢得过英国俱乐部，在12次访问中输了9次。

两位主教练都有伤病问题需要解决。瓜迪奥拉没有马特奥·科瓦伊茨、奥马尔·马穆什、拉扬Aït-Nouri和拉扬·切尔基，而约翰·斯通斯也不确定。与此同时，孔蒂必须在没有卢卡库、梅雷特、拉赫马尼等人的情况下应对，尽管他仍然拥有由德布鲁因、麦克托米内和赫隆德领衔的强大阵容。

德布鲁因的回归为这场已经很诱人的冲突增添了额外的趣味，比利时人很可能会激励那不勒斯威胁他的老东家。然而，曼城的主场优势和哈兰德无情的进球记录给了他们优势。