Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis goes live on air to make insane promise to his players ahead of Barcelona game

Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis made a staggering promise to his players ahead of the second leg of their Champions League last-16 clash against Barcelona.

The Italian side went into Tuesday night's tie at the Camp Nou with hope after Victor Osimhen cancelled out Robert Lewandowski's opener to secure a 1-1 draw.

De Laurentiis, meanwhile, wanted to give his side some extra incentive before kick-off.

In an interview with journalist Guillem Balague for CBS Sports, the 74-year-old promised his Napoli players more than €10 million in bonuses if they progressed to the quarter-final stage.

"You are very well informed," he laughed after being asked about the bonus. "It's more than €10 million, in fact."

Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis confirms to @GuillemBalague he will be paying his players €10m+ if they beat Barca 🤯 pic.twitter.com/VCMULgsxcY

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 12, 2024

De Laurentiis is reportedly intent on qualifying for the 2025 Club World Cup. Napoli are battling Serie A rivals Juventus in the race to secure a spot in the tournament alongside Inter Milan.

If they manage to overcome Barcelona then they will edge closer to appearing in the new-look competition as the club with the highest ranking based on Champions League results from the 2020/21 to the 2023/24 campaigns qualify.

Back in December, FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced that the Club World Cup would expand to a 32-team tournament in 2025, including 12 clubs from Europe.

Speaking on the changes, Infantino said: “The Fifa Club World Cup 2025 will be the pinnacle of elite professional men’s club football, and with the required infrastructure in place together with a massive local interest, the United States is the ideal host to kick off this new, global tournament.

“With some of the world's top clubs already qualified, fans from every continent will be bringing their passion and energy to the United States in two years' time for this significant milestone in our mission to make football truly global."

Teams should receive at least £25 million as a result of their participation in next year's Club World Cup. That sum could rise to as high as £50 million.