Midfielder Thiago Motta has to sit this one out because of suspension and Marquinhos is just a booking away from missing the return leg at the Camp Nou.
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Barcelona are still fighting on three fronts, keeping alive the prospect of another La Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League treble to match those achieved in 2009 and 2015.
The noise level at Parc des Princes reached deafening proportions as the home fans watched in nearly stunned disbelief as Barcelona cracked under waves of incessant pressure.
“Emery knows us perfectly well, he knows very well the threat that we pose as a team”, Barca’s soft-spoken coach said through a translator. “(Losing to City) was hard to take because we knew we could win”, Lucas told the AP.
Paris are now second in Ligue 1 behind an impressive Monaco and enjoyed a confident 3-0 win away to Bordeaux on Friday night, but it is in Europe where Emery will eventually be judged. I know how to play, that’s it.
Edinson Cavani and Blaise Matuidi went close to scoring for the hosts as they hit a rather languid Barcelona on the counter, but thanks to a combination of some last-ditch defending and some alertness from keeper Marc Andre-ter Stegen, were unable to break the deadlock.
PSG have beaten Barcelona in the recent past – Lucas was in the starting line-up for a 3-2 victory in the group stage in September 2014.
Skipper Silva will miss the game after sitting out training on Monday, having already been absent for the Bordeaux win.
The Brazilian centre-back is suffering from “a persistent left calf problem”, a club source said.
“I can’t imagine any manager has played Barca as many times as Unai”, Enruque said on Monday.
You would have been laughed out the room if you had predicted Paris Saint-Germain to thrash Barcelona 4-0 before Tuesday night.
Tactically, Emery outclassed his opposite number Luis Enrique, while Lionel Messi was among the star-studded Barca line-up outplayed on the field.
Barcelona’s Javier Mascherano will be missing off the back line because of injury, while Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal are also on the injury list.
“We weren’t surprised at all, we had spoken about their pressing before the game but that doesn’t mean you can overcome it”.
Emery sent his team out to strangle their ball-playing opponents. If only di Maria and Cavani could turn 29 and 30, respectively, every game day.
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“These players have shown down the years that they can get great results”.
