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Mazzarri ban temporarily lifted

Walter Mazzarri: Napoli coach will take his place on the bench at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night
Image: Walter Mazzarri: Napoli coach will take his place on the bench at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night

Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri has had his touchline ban temporarily lifted and will take his place on the bench for the match against Chelsea.

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Napoli coach will be on touchline for crucial clash against Chelsea

Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri has had his touchline ban temporarily lifted by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and will take his place on the bench for the UEFA Champions League match against Chelsea. Mazzarri had been handed a two-match ban by UEFA for improper conduct after he pushed Villarreal forward Nilmar over alleged time-wasting tactics during a group game in December. UEFA increased the length of the ban to three games - the final game suspended for two years - after rejecting Napoli's appeal against the sanction. Mazzarri had to watch Napoli win the first leg 3-1 at the San Paolo against Chelsea on TV but will be at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night after CAS suspended the ban in order to study Napoli's appeal in more detail. Napoli are the only one of this season's five debutants still standing in the competition and the head coach is looking forward to the game. "We've still got a lot of work to do," said the 50-year-old. "We're going to have to play to the limit for the entire 90 minutes. "This squad has a defect in that it's not able to maintain its level for all 90 minutes."

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