UEFA Champions League Group D Preview: FC København vs. FC Barcelona
Group D leaders FC Barcelona face 2nd placed FC København on Tuesday night in the UEFA Champions League. A victory at the Danish capital for the Catalans will ensure their qualification for the round of 16. However,
København manager Stale Solbakken has suggested that his team will go all-guns-blazing and will be aiming to take all 3 points off the game.
Meanwhile, his counterpart, Pep Guardiola expects a resilient display from his opponents. Guardiola has expressed his views about the competitiveness of the competition and has said that no side is “easy” in the competition.
He said, “We face a very strong opponent. FC København are national champions, which is always difficult no matter what league you're in, and they do not give many chances away. The fact that we have not won an away fixture in
the Champions League in almost a year shows how difficult the competition is, but our goal is to claim the three points tomorrow and secure qualification for the next round.”
Irrespective of the outcome on night, the Danish champions will still be in a position to qualify for the next round, which means they can go out and play more aggressively. København played a decent game at Camp Nou but were no
match to the Spanish side’s attacking flare and cutting-edge passing. However, Stale is hoping the home crowd creates an atmosphere at Parken Stadium, which will help their team to go on and pull a surprise result.
Both teams won their matches in their respective domestic leagues at the weekend. København defeated Lyngby BK 3-2 in the Danish Superliga, while Barcelona crushed Sevilla FC 5-0 at the Nou Camp, in the LIGA BBVA.
Man to watch: Lionel Messi
Barcelona won 2-0 when the two teams met in Spain on 20th October, thanks to a magical brace scored by their golden boy Lionel Messi. Lio has been in electrifying form this season, and has rattled the net 11 times in
10 appearances for the Spanish champions. He is currently the 2nd highest goal scorer in this season’s Champions League, and will be looking to increase his tally.
FC København manager is aware of the threat posed by the Argentinean and will be trying to stop him from causing problems in the back 4. However, he admits that man-marking a player of Messi’s pace and quality is almost impossible.
Solbakken said, “Messi was a key player and scored both goals and it will be extremely important to stop him from roaming in the area between our midfield and defence. If we can push him out towards the sidelines we will have a
better chance of preventing him creating chances. Cleverer coaches than me and better players than mine have tried and been unsuccessful at stopping Messi, but with a great team effort we have a chance.”
Guardiola has Xavi Hernandez back in the midfield, after the mercurial midfielder missed the previous tie due to a tendinitis injury.
København’s probable starting 11: Johan Wiland, Zdenek Pospech, Claudemir de Souza, William Kvist, Jesper Grønkjær, Cesar Santin, Dame N’Doye, Mikael Antonsson, Oscar Wendt, Martin Vingaard, Mathias Zanka Jorgensen.
FC Barcelona’s probable starting 11: Victor Valdes, Daniel Alves, Gerard Pique, Carles Puyol, Maxwell, Xavi Hernandez, Javier Mascherano, David Villa, Lionel Messi, Pedro Rodriguez.
Match Prediction:
History reveals FC København have never beaten their La Liga opponents at home in European ties. By contrast, the Spanish giants have won all three previous games in Denmark and have yet to concede a goal. With stats like those,
Barcelona are expected to record a convincing 2-0 victory and book their place in the knock-out round.
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