Author: Crazy

Here’s a collection of interesting facts ahead of the return leg of the Champions League quarter-final between FC Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain

FC Barcelona’s rival on Wednesday, Paris Saint-Germain, was founded in 1970. Perhaps due to the French team’s relatively short history, there’s only been one official match between them and the Blaugrana in the quarter-finals of the Champions League not counting the match that took place last week. It took place in the 1994/95 season and the result was a one-all draw. The goal scorers were Korneiev and Weah. Here are a couple of other interesting facts ahead of tomorrow’s match:

– FC Barcelona haven’t dropped a game at the Camp Nou in the Champions League in three years. Since the defeat to Rubin Kazan (October 20, 2009) Barca have won 16 matches and tied 4 at home.

– This is the second time in the history of PSG that they’ve qualified for the quarter-finals of the competition.

– Olympique Lyon, the last French team to visit the Camp Nou in the Champions League, lost by 5 to 2 (Round of 16, 2008/09).

– Barça have bested their quart-final opponents for the past six consecutive seasons.

– All of Paris Saint-Germain’s goals have been scored from within the area (19).

– Xavi Hernández, despite missing a match in the competition, is the player that has completed the most passes in the tournament (930), 411 more than the player in second place.

– With 59 goals, Leo Messi is the second highest goalscorer ever in the Champions League. Raul González currently sits atop of the list with 71 goals.

– Jordi Alba, Adriano, Song, and Piqué are one booking away from being suspended, while Lavezzi and Thiago Silva are in the same situation.

UEFA takes a look at FC Barcelona’s first final in Wembley and Leo Messi takes on a very unusual goalkeeper

UEFA.com has been focusing on Champions League finals hosted at the legendary Wembley stadium in the run-up to this year’s final in London. This past week, the series took a detailed look at the 1992 final between FC Barcelona and Sampdoria.

Johan Cruyff, manager of the team that is now known as the Dream Team, recalled his vast experience as a player and then a manager prepared him well in the run-up to colossal showdown with the Italian side:

“It was the experience I had as a player and then as a coach; you knew what went wrong the first time, you knew why you lost, but you knew what went well the three times you win. This experience is something not a lot of people have, so as soon as you have it you can build it through, you can build it up in the way you want to do it especially as a coach.”

UEFA.com also interviewed ex-FC Barcelona player Gary Lineker, who scored 42 goals in the Barça strip between 1986 and 1989. Lineker noted: “I was at that game, I went along to watch. I had just finished at Barcelona a few years prior so I was desperately keen that they went on and won it [sic]. They thoroughly deserved to do so. I remember it was Koeman who knocked it away for the winner …. It was very emotional occasion and a terrific atmosphere as there always was at Wembley and still is.”

Watch the segment in its entirety here.

• Messi faces off against a robot

When a well oiled machine duels a robot on the football pitch the outcome is never certain, but it’s always entertaining. And entertaining it was when Leo Messi stepped up to the penalty spot and faced a keeper the likes he’d never encountered before. The Argentine, who agreed to the duel proposed by a Japanese TV game show, tested his mettle against a keeper not made of human flesh and bones, but a mechanical robot made of wires and steel. To see the shootout, see the video below:

Over recent years, Barça have shown that they are more than capable of overcoming injury crises which have affected them ahead of big European games.

With Puyol and Mascherano definitely out of Wednesday’s quarter final second leg game against PSG and with Messi, Pedro and Adriano all doubtful, Barça are in many ways on familiar territory – having overcome similar injury crises on a number of occasions in recent years – most notably the 2008/09 semi-final at Stamford Bridge, when Henry, Milito, Márquez, and Puyol were all ruled out.

2008/09: Iniesta’s wonder goal and four men missing

After the goalless draw in the first leg at the Camp Nou, Barça travelled to London to fight for a place in the Champions League Final without four key players – Henry, Milito and Márquez were all injured and Puyol was suspended. To add to their troubles, Eric Abidal was shown a red card with more than 20 minutes to go, as Chelsea sniffed the chance of a win. As all Barça fans surely remember, it was Iniesta though, who was the hero at the death, with his wonderful winner. In the final in Rome, Barça was again without Milito and Marquez, whilst Abidal and Alves were both suspended.

2009/10: Piqué and Puyol miss out against Arsenal

In the 2009/10 season quarter finals, Barça went into the second leg against The Gunners after a 2-2 draw in London, with both their first choice central defenders missing. Pique and Puyol were both suspended and Ibrahimovic was also out injured. As so often, Messi showed up for the big occasion with all four goals, as Barça brushed aside Arsene Wenger’s side 4-1. In the semi-finals that year, the team came agonisingly close to the Madrid final, going down to Inter Milan in a second leg game at the Camp Nou for which Puyol was suspended and Abidal and Iniesta injured.

2010/11: Once again Piqué and Puyol out against Arsenal

Just a year after their meeting in the quarter finals, Barça and Arsenal were again drawn to play, but this time in the Last 16 and once again Puyol – injured- and Piqué – suspended- both missed out. Coming back from their 2-1 defeat in England, Messi was again decisive, bagging two in the 3-1 win at the Camp Nou, with Xavi getting the other at the start of a knock out stage that saw them go all the way to victory at Wembley.

A repeat of any but one of the seven results Barça have achieved against French teams at the Camp Nou on Wednesday would be enough to see them through to the Champions League semi-finals.

History is on Barça’s side this Wednesday if we look at previous results against French teams at the Camp Nou, with six of the seven games ending in results that if repeated would see Barça through to the Champions League semi-finals.

FCB 2-0 Niza. UEFA Cup. 1973/74
Goals from Sotil and Díaz gave Barça a win that wasn’t quite enough after losing 3-0 in the first leg in France.FCB 1-4 Metz. Cup Winners Cup.1984/85
The only result that if repeated would see Barça lose the tie against PSG. Despite winning 2-4 in France, in the return game on October 3rd, the team suffered a painful home defeat.

FCB 2-0 Mònaco. Champions League.1993/94
Two goals from Begiristain save Barça a win in the Group stage in the 93-94 competition which Barça ended up as runners up.

FCB 1-1 PSG. Champions League. 1994/95
A second half goal from Weah equalised Korneiev’s opener and Barça were eliminated after losing 2-1 in the second leg in Paris.

FCB 2-0 Lyon. Champions League. 2001/02
Kluivert and Rivaldo, from the penalty spot, gave Barça the win in the 2001/02 season’s Group Stage, with a 2-3 win following in the return game in France.

FCB 3-0 Lyon. Champions League. 2007/08
Once more, Barça were drawn in a group with Lyon and once again they won – Rijkaard’s side brushing aside the French team in the competition’s opening game.

FCB 5-2 Lyon. Champions League. 2008/09
After a 1-1 draw in the first leg in France, Henry (2), Messi, Eto’o and Keita saw Barça through to the quarter finals.

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