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Barca get ready to crush Celtic
03/03/2008 09:14 - (SA)
Spain - Barcelona will be looking to bounce back after their first defeat of the year and Celtic could be the whipping boys when they meet in their Champions League last 16 second leg match on Tuesday.
The Catalan club lost 4-2 in La Liga at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday and, despite having won 3-2 in Glasgow two weeks ago, Barca are not in the mood to let the Scots off lightly after their 15-game unbeaten streak came to an end.
"We have to learn from these mistakes and crush the opponent when he's down," threatened Barca's Spanish international playmaker Xavi Hernandez.
"I don't think that defeat will affect our next game. We know we didn't play well but now we've got to get ready for the Champions League match," added Barca coach Frank Rijkaard in his usual cautious fashion.
However, Barca insiders on Sunday said they expected Rijkaard to have torn a strip off his team in the dressing room despite his calm demeanour to the outside world.
Medical staff
One man who will have partially escaped the Dutchman's wrath will be their Argentine winger Lionel Messi, who surprisingly started on the bench and only played 33 minutes against Atletico after replacing Thierry Henry.
"I talked to the medical staff and they suggested some players were in danger of getting a strain," explained Rijkaard, clearly keeping the 2007 World Player of the Year runner-up in cotton wool ahead of Celtic's visit.
Messi is expected to start on Tuesday in place of the lack-lustre Henry, with former World Player of the Year Ronaldinho likely to keep his place in the forward line after being one of the few to impress in the Spanish capital.
The other change to the team that went down Atletico is in the midfield, with Yaha Toure probably replacing Edmilson.
Celtic, the first British team to win the continent's top club honour when they took the European Cup in 1967, are optimistic that they can progress to the quarter-finals for the first time since 1980.
They warmed up for their visit to Barcelona with a 2-0 win at Hibernian on Saturday.
Second half goals from Lee Naylor and Giorgios Samaras meant they stay in second place in the Scottish Premier League, four points behind bitter rivals Rangers.
Uphill task
"We going to Barcelona with a good feeling, with confidence. We're still alive and I hope we have a good game. Things could change quickly if we get an early goal," said Celtic manager Gordon Strachan.
However, some of his players are taking a slightly more sanguine view of the uphill task they face.
"Getting through would be one of the best results in the club's history, considering the opposition we are up against," reflected Celtic midfielder Aiden McGeady on Sunday.
"Barcelona don't have one or two world class players, they have six or seven. To get through would be unbelievable as we are playing against one of the best teams in the world.
"They (Barcelona) stepped up a gear at Celtic Park and it was very tough to get the ball off them. But hopefully it will be different in the Nou Camp and we can get a bit of possession and get up the park," added one of the young stars of Scottish football.
Unlike his opposite number Rijkaard, Strachan has several worries over the fitness of key players.
Troublesome ankle
Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink continues to struggle with a sore hamstring and Samaras could start in place of the Dutch striker as a partner to Scott McDonald up front.
Midfielder Scott Brown, who was suspended for the first leg, had further problems with his troublesome ankle against Hibernian and was visibly limping at the end of the first half but stuck it out until the final whistle.
However, Strachan believes Brown's tenacity may allow him to play against Barcelona.
"Brown was fantastic (against Hibernian). At half-time I thought there was no chance of him going on again. But he was determined, he was angry and got stuck in," added Strachan on Sunday.
Despite the Scots' willingness to get 'stuck in', the odds remain firmly against Celtic causing an upset.
- AFP
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