Barcelona defender Gerard Pique says Copenhagen must be respected
Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has taken note of Copenhagen’s impressive start to their UEFA Champions League campaign and has insisted that the Danish champions have to be respected when the sides meet on Wedesday, 20 October.
Copenhagen top their qualifying group after winning their first two games — they defeated Russian champions Rubin Kazan and Greek title-holders Panathinaikos to lead Barca by two points and Rubin by five.
A 1-1 draw with Rubin has left Barcelona trailing, and they will have to play catch-up if they are to win the group and avoid playing any other group winners in the knockout stages of the competition. However, they will have their work cut out if they are
to gain a positive result against Copenhagen — Barca have struggled at home in La Liga and cannot afford to take the Danish side lightly, according to 2010 FIFA World Cup winner Pique.
'Difficult to fix Champions League mistakes'
When asked if the Copenhagen game was as important as the 2-1 victory over Valencia on Sunday, he told Spanish daily newspaper Sport that: "Our opponents are not as well known, but the points are just the same or even more important. In the league an error
can be rectified because the season is long, but it's difficult to turn around a slip-up at home in the Champions League.
"Copenhagen have won both their games and this tells you everything. It may seem that they aren't as strong as Valencia, but if they've beaten opponents such as Rubin and Panathinaikos, we cannot be over-confident."
Copenhagen are one of the most in-form sides in Europe, having claimed their tenth win in their last 11 competitive matches when they thumped Odense 5-0 in the Danish league on Sunday. They have claimed 32 points from their 12 league games so far, highlighting
just how well Stale Solbakken's men have been performing.
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