History awaits Barcelona tonight as they take on Paris Saint-Germain in the 2nd leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie. The Catalan side are 4-0 down and need to win by a five-goal margin to proceed to the next round.
Making it to the next round after losing the first tie 4-0 has never happened before in the history of the Champions League. For Barcelona to create history and become the first team to do so, here's what we think they have to do:
#5 Early Goal
"There’s only one moment in which you can arrive in time. If you’re not there, you’re either too early or too late." - Johan Cruyff
90 minutes. That's all Barcelona have to score at least four goals without conceding one to have any chance of making it into the last eight of the Champions League this season. To get the momentum going, they need an early goal.
Scoring early goals is not something Barcelona are unfamiliar with. Messi scored within five minutes against AC Milan back in 2012 when they were trailing by 2-0 from the first leg. They just need to replicate the same tonight as well.
If not in the first five minutes, a goal before the 15th minute is crucial. If the La Liga giants don't get a goal before that, PSG will have the upper hand and also become more and more confident.
In the three home matches during the group stage, Messi has scored in the 3rd, 16th and the 17th minute. A repeat of this and Barcelona will have the tides turned. PSG will be under a lot of pressure, and the Catalan giants can capitalise on it with ease.
#4 Keep Verratti marked
"There are very few players who know what to do when they’re not marked. So sometimes you tell a player: that attacker is very good, but don’t mark him." - Johan Cruyff
Marco Verratti dominated the midfield in the first leg and played the more vital role in Paris Saint-Germain's historic 4-0 win at Parc des Princes. The Italian was given a lot of space, and he made every inch of it count.
With a pass success of 92% in the reverse fixture, the 24-year-old midfielder ensured that the centre of the pitch was all PSG's. He even managed to grab an assist.
Keeping Busquets or Rakitic on the toes of the Italian all the time is essential. Cramping him for space and ensuring that he's not able to make those crucial passes to Rabiot or Matuidi is going to win the midfield for Barcelona.
#3 Let Messi be Messi
"He is incomparable. He’s in a different league." - Johan Cruyff
Seven goals in three matches including two hat-tricks – that's Messi's record at Camp Nou this season in the Champions League. He's scored before the 20th minute in every single one of those matches, and that's exactly what Barcelona would want from him today as well.
Messi is the only Barcelona player to have scored in the first half of a home match in the Champions League this season. This just goes to show how much the Catalan side rely on him.
The Argentine magician has time and again proved that he can single-handedly win matches for Barcelona. But it's essential that he is given that freedom by his team-mates and Enrique, so that he can turn out to be the difference between the teams.
Messi has scored five goals in a single match before – against Bayer Leverkusen in 2012 – and that's the exact number of goals Barcelona need tonight. Not that Messi can score five goals again this evening, but nothing is stopping him from being involved in all of them.
#2 Play a high-pressure game
"In my teams, the goalie is the first attacker, and the striker the first defender." - Johan Cruyff
The biggest mistake Barcelona made at Parc des Princes is that they gave the PSG players a lot of space. Verratti, Rabiot and Matuidi dominated the midfield while Di Maria and Draxler ran past the full-backs with ease.
Barcelona need to put more pressure when PSG are on the ball and make sure that everyone is marked all the time. Staying back and defending is something they should avoid at all costs.
Messi, Neymar and Suarez have to contribute defensively by putting pressure on the PSG defenders as soon as they get the ball, and the defenders should play a high line tonight. Meunier and Kurzawa were dominant against MSN in the first leg and that's something they should avoid.
#1 Believe
"We must make sure their worst players get the ball the most. You’ll get it back in no time." - Johan Cruyff
More than anything tonight, Barcelona have to believe in themselves. No team has ever overcome a four-goal deficit in the knockout stage of the Champions League, but if there is any team that can do it, it's Barcelona.
Back in 2004, Deportivo La Coruna players produced the performance of their lifetime. After losing the first leg of their quarter-final to AC Milan 4-1, the La Liga side ended up winning 4-0 at home against the mighty Italians. They won the tie 5-4 on aggregate – completing one of the biggest upsets in the history of the competition.
In 2005, Liverpool did something very similar. 3-0 down at half-time, they went on to win the Champions League final against AC Milan. The difference? They scored an early goal in the 2nd half, put pressure on Milan's best midfielder – Kaka – and played a high-pressure game.
Barcelona have to do all that tonight, and more, to make sure that they make it into the next round.
