dpa – Coach Mauricio Pochettino has said Paris Saint-Germain will be ready to face Barcelona in their blockbuster Champions League tie.
PSG will travel to Lionel Messi’s Barca for Tuesday’s last-16 first leg at Camp Nou after edging Nice 2-1 in Ligue 1 on Saturday.
Goals from Julian Draxler and Moise Kean guided PSG past Nice in the French capital, where the Ligue 1 champions extended their winning streak to four matches across all competitions. Post-match, Pochettino highlighted the importance of the upcoming showdown against Barcelona but believes PSG will be ready for it, with star forward Neymar however sidelined with injury against his former club.
“We have to be ready,” Pochettino told reporters. Because we have a very important match on Tuesday. And the team will be ready for this match. “First of all it will be recovery, both physical and mental. It’s important to recharge the batteries. “On a tactical level, we won’t be able to work a lot on the field, but we will be able to use video. It’s something we’ve been preparing for several weeks, so that the players can understand the game plan for this match.”
PSG have won six of their eight Ligue 1 games under Pochettino, after winning just three of their previous seven at the end of 2020 when Thomas Tuchel was still in charge. They are meeting Barca for the first time since their famous 6-1 collapse at the Nou Camp in the same round in 2016-17, after having won the first leg 4-0 at home.
