FC Barcelona's Assistant Manager: "Only victory guarantees us a spot in the semi-finals"
Barça’s Assistant Manager, Jordi Roura says that Barça will be ambitious against PSG on Wednesday’s second leg game. Roura, who take care of Barça during Tito Vilanova’s absence, notes that only victory would guarantee a spot in the semi-finals of the Champions League. On Messi, Adriano and Pedro's fitness, Barça's assistant manager says that “we have to wait and see how they feel and we especially have to see the results from their latest medical tests”. Nevertheless, Messi trained on Tuesday with the rest of his team-mates, although he has not received the medical all-clear yet.
Barcelona (FCB).- FC Barcelona will approach tomorrow’s match against PSG as if it were a final. “We have to approach the match with maximum intensity and maximum ambition. We can’t sit on our advantage. We need to start the match with the singular purpose of winning, that’s the only way we can guarantee ourselves a spot in the semi-finals of the Champions League for the sixth year in a row,” said Jordi Roura during this afternoon’s press conference at the Ciutat Esportiva.
Despite the fact that the Parisian team need to score at the Camp Nou to progress, the Catalan Assistant Manager doesn’t expect PSG to change their style of play from the away leg at the Parc des Princes: “we’re expecting to go up against a team that will cede the ball to us. We’re accustomed to playing these types of games, a lot of teams do this against us.”
Waiting on Messi, Adriano and Pedro
When asked if Messi, Adriano and Pedro will be available on Wednesday, Roura said, “we still have a few training sessions to evaluate their fitness. At the moment, the sensations are good but we need to wait and see how they feel and we especially have to see the results from their latest medical tests.” He added: “if any one of these players end up playing, it’s be because they are 100% able to do so.”
Roura went on to say that “in the end if we can’t call on the best player in the world, for us that’s a handicap.” He quickly added that “we have a very deep and talented roster. We’ll be just as ambitious [if Messi isn’t available].” According to the Assistant Manager, the match against Mallorca was a good prelude to tomorrow’s showdown with PSG: “the players that have to play in Messi’s position have shown that they can perform at a very high level.”
Solid defence
“It’s true that we have been a bit unlucky when it comes to closing out games. We’re aware of this problem and we’ve been working on it,” said Roura when asked about Barça’s numerous confirmed absences on defence. He added: “we’re hoping that the players that play on Wednesday have a very solid game on defence.”