The Gunners arrived at San Paolo looking to protect a 2-0 first leg lead against Carlo Ancelottis Italian Serie A outfit who hold a strong home record and won the previous meeting at the venue by the same scoreline in the 2013-14 group stages. However, after comfortably keeping Napoli at bay, Unai Emerys side went ahead on the night and grabbed a crucial away goal through Lacazette nine minutes before half-time. Needing four goals to go through, Napoli threw more men forward as the game progressed but failed to get anywhere near their target as Arsenal advance to the last-four where they will face Spanish La Liga side Valencia Mesut Ozil was dropped to the bench to be replaced by Granit Xhaka in midfield as Arsenal made just one change from last week's first leg at the Emirates Stadium. Napoli made three changes from the opening encounter as Dries Mertens was surprisingly left on the bench to be replaced by Arkadiusz Milik, while Faouzi Ghoulam and Vlad Chiriches came in for Mario Rui and Elseid Hysaj. Arsenal made a positive start in a deafening atmosphere and, after Lacazettes heavy touch inside the area cost him a shooting opportunity, Aaron Ramsey saw his hopeful penalty appeals waved away in the 10th minute after going to ground under a challenge from Nikola Maksimovic. Napolis first attempt of note came in the 17th minute when the launched a counter-attack after clearing a Xhaka cross and Kalidou Koulibaly played in Jose Callejon on the right of the area, but his angled drive was saved by the legs of Petr Cech. The hosts were denied an opening goal on 24 minutes when the assistants flag was up for offside against Milik who had picked up a pass from Lorenzo Insigne and dinked his shot over the advancing Cech. Napoli continued to increase the tempo, while Arsenal were also hit by the loss of Ramsey to what looked like a hamstring injury just after the half-hour mark. However, it was Arsenal who got the decisive opening goal of the game on 36 minutes when Lacazette was fouled around 25 yards from goal and then stepped up to curl a superb free-kick over the defensive wall and beyond the dive of Alex Meret to make it 3-0 on aggregate. The Gunners had their tails up after grabbing a vital away goal, knowing that Napoli needed to score four to progress, and they almost made it 2-0 on the night when Lacazette turned provider but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang couldnt get a decisive touch at the back post. Napoli came out for the second half in a determined mood as they looked to try and get the four goals required to take them into the semi-finals. However, it was Arsenal who almost put the final nail in their coffin on 48 minutes when Henrikh Mkhitarayan teed up the unmarked Aubameyang inside the area, but the forward was denied by a fantastic save from Meret. Insigne looked like pulling one goal back on the hour mark, but his attempt to lift the ball over Cech failed miserably and the veteran Czech custodian managed to gather the ball, before the hosts ambitious penalty shout for handball against Lucas Torreira on 64 minutes was also rightly rebuffed by the referee. The hosts continued pressing but struggled to break down the Gunners, although Laurent Koscielny did well to block a Milik effort on the turn to deflect it wide for a corner. Arsenal were fortunate not to concede an own goal on 80 minutes when a Piotr Zielinksi cross went under the foot of Koscielny and deflected off Nacho Monreal towards his own net, but Cech was on hand to make the save.
Napoli 0-1 Arsenal
However, after comfortably keeping Napoli at bay, Unai Emerys side went ahead on the night and grabbed a crucial away goal through Lacazette nine minutes before half-time.
Needing four goals to go through, Napoli threw more men forward as the game progressed but failed to get anywhere near their target as Arsenal advance to the last-four where they will face Spanish La Liga side Valencia
Mesut Ozil was dropped to the bench to be replaced by Granit Xhaka in midfield as Arsenal made just one change from last week's first leg at the Emirates Stadium.
Napoli made three changes from the opening encounter as Dries Mertens was surprisingly left on the bench to be replaced by Arkadiusz Milik, while Faouzi Ghoulam and Vlad Chiriches came in for Mario Rui and Elseid Hysaj.
Arsenal made a positive start in a deafening atmosphere and, after Lacazettes heavy touch inside the area cost him a shooting opportunity, Aaron Ramsey saw his hopeful penalty appeals waved away in the 10th minute after going to ground under a challenge from Nikola Maksimovic.
Napolis first attempt of note came in the 17th minute when the launched a counter-attack after clearing a Xhaka cross and Kalidou Koulibaly played in Jose Callejon on the right of the area, but his angled drive was saved by the legs of Petr Cech.
The hosts were denied an opening goal on 24 minutes when the assistants flag was up for offside against Milik who had picked up a pass from Lorenzo Insigne and dinked his shot over the advancing Cech.
Napoli continued to increase the tempo, while Arsenal were also hit by the loss of Ramsey to what looked like a hamstring injury just after the half-hour mark.
However, it was Arsenal who got the decisive opening goal of the game on 36 minutes when Lacazette was fouled around 25 yards from goal and then stepped up to curl a superb free-kick over the defensive wall and beyond the dive of Alex Meret to make it 3-0 on aggregate.
The Gunners had their tails up after grabbing a vital away goal, knowing that Napoli needed to score four to progress, and they almost made it 2-0 on the night when Lacazette turned provider but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang couldnt get a decisive touch at the back post.
Napoli came out for the second half in a determined mood as they looked to try and get the four goals required to take them into the semi-finals.
However, it was Arsenal who almost put the final nail in their coffin on 48 minutes when Henrikh Mkhitarayan teed up the unmarked Aubameyang inside the area, but the forward was denied by a fantastic save from Meret.
Insigne looked like pulling one goal back on the hour mark, but his attempt to lift the ball over Cech failed miserably and the veteran Czech custodian managed to gather the ball, before the hosts ambitious penalty shout for handball against Lucas Torreira on 64 minutes was also rightly rebuffed by the referee.
The hosts continued pressing but struggled to break down the Gunners, although Laurent Koscielny did well to block a Milik effort on the turn to deflect it wide for a corner.
Arsenal were fortunate not to concede an own goal on 80 minutes when a Piotr Zielinksi cross went under the foot of Koscielny and deflected off Nacho Monreal towards his own net, but Cech was on hand to make the save.