Tuesday night in the Champions League was extremely harsh for two of the most important coaches in football history, Jose Mourinho and Antonio Conte.
It started with the Special One, who suffered another defeat on English soil with his team, Benfica, this time against Newcastle at St. James’ Park.
The defeat came 3-0, with goals from Harvey Barnes and Anthony Gordon, in a match in which Mourinho’s team was almost surrendered and posed no threat to Newcastle’s goal.
Mourinho had been defeated with Benfica in England by Chelsea 1-0 in the previous round, leaving his team without points after three rounds of the Champions League.
In the Netherlands, Conte experienced a real disaster, as Napoli were defeated 6-2 by PSV Eindhoven at the Philips Stadium.
The match was balanced until the 76th minute, when PSV Eindhoven led 3-1. Napoli repeatedly tried to come back, but Lorenzo Luca’s expulsion changed everything, helping the home side score three more goals in the final quarter-hour.
This is the first time a Dutch club has scored six goals in a European match since Ajax in 1979 against Cypriot club Omonia Nicosia.
This is Napoli’s second consecutive defeat under Conte, following their loss to Torino in Serie A. It is also their second in the Champions League, following their first-round loss to Manchester City and a subsequent 2-1 victory over Sporting Lisbon.
