Clik here to view.
FC Barcelona will make their 2014-15 UEFA Champions League debut today, as they prepare to welcome Cypriot champions APOEL Nicosia to the Camp Nou in the opening match of Group F. Following two impressive, yet narrow victories over Villarreal CF and Athletic Bilbao, the Blaugrana sense that today’s match presents them with an opportunity to make a statement to the rest of the footballing world: a statement that real progress has and is being made under the guidance of new head coach, Luis Enrique.
Following a morale-boosting 2-0 victory over Basque visitors, Athletic Bilbao on Saturday afternoon, FC Barcelona extended their winning streak to three games under new coach Luis Enrique, and even the most pessimistic Culé would admit that the Blaugrana are overwhelming favorites to make that four today against APOEL Nicosia.
Luis Enrique will be mindful of that fact; APOEL are unlikely to come out and play so to speak, so while the temptation may be to implement full-scale changes, the best course may be to stick with a few of the big guns and rotate them out when the contest is over.
Marc Andre Ter Stegen is expected to start his first official game for FC Barcelona. Dani Alves who received medical green light today following his knee discomfort is also expected to start. Busquets and Mascherano have not been included in the probable 18 players list which indicates Sergi Samper another young gun from La Masia could start. It would be his debut game for the club which he joined almost 13 years ago. Messi shall lead the attack alongside Brazilian veteran Neymar and another La Masia young prospect Rafinha.
On the other hand, APOEL qualified for the group stage by virtue of a 5-1 aggregate victory over Danish champions Aalborg BK and are currently unbeaten through two games of their domestic season. In fact, like their opposition, APOEL are yet to concede in domestic action, running out comfortable 2-0 victory in their opening match against AEK Larnaca, and 1-0 winners at the weekend against Ermis.
However, that’s probably where the similarities end; APOEL don’t quite have the luxury of deciding whether or not they can rest a four-time Ballon d’Or winner. Instead, head coach Giorgios Donis must decide whether to keep faith with his usual three-man strikeforce, or whether to drop a winger such as Gustavo Manduca into a more withdrawn, midfield role.
Quite how Donis will approach today’s match is unknown – there’s no real precedent for Barca to follow and plan against; APOEL simply don’t play teams of the Barca`s caliber often enough to draw out a pattern.
In his pre-match press conference with UEFA, Donis spoke about facing Barcelona and how they intend to approach the match.
“We are in a very tough group and we are starting the competition against one of the toughest sides in the world. We have a tough task ahead of us, but we will do our best. Barcelona don’t allow opponents to play well, they always have the ball, so we must be very disciplined, very focused in defence, and know what to do with the ball when we get it. Retaining focus is the most important thing.”
“This is a special experience for the team but I want it to be more than just an experience. They have respect for the best players in the world, but they mustn’t think any less of themselves. We are delighted to be in the group stage. We made a huge effort to win the league and get here, so now we have to enjoy it. There will be another huge effort tomorrow.”
Match Date: Wednesday, 17th September 2014
Kick off: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona
Capacity: 98,787
Probable Lineups:
FC Barcelona: Ter Stegen, D.Alves, M.Bartra, J.Matheiu, Adriano, Xavi, Samper, Iniesta, Rafinha, Messi, Neymar
APOEL Nicosia: Pardo, Sergio, Carlao, Guilherme, Risse, Vinicius, Vincenti, Morais, Efrem, Manduca, Djebbour
Previous meeting: N/A
Author`s prediction: FC Barcelona 4-0 APOEL Nicosi