Paris Saint-Germain v Barcelona: Adriano urges Catalans to learn from mistakes

Nicholas McGee

Paris Saint-Germain v Barcelona: Adriano urges Catalans to learn from mistakes image

Adriano has urged Barcelona to learn from their mistakes from the group-stage games with Paris Saint-Germain when they face the French club in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

Having defeated Manchester City in the last 16, Barca were pitted against a PSG side that knocked out Chelsea in the previous round and caused the Catalans significant problems in the pools. 

Barca were beaten 3-2 at the Parc des Princes but won the return fixture 3-1 at Camp Nou, despite falling behind to an early Zlatan Ibrahimovic goal.

But versatile Brazilian Adriano, who could replace the suspended Dani Alves at right-back in Paris on Wednesday, is expecting a very different challenge this time around.

He told Barca's official website: "They're going to come at us with a lot more intensity, more ready to go and I think that they are going to try to avoid committing the same errors as before, especially in the match at Camp Nou, when we played much better than the game in Paris.

"In that first game there, we suffered too much. We didn't succeed in keeping possession of the ball.

"What we want to do is play our game. In the first half at Camp Nou we didn't have the ball much but in the second half we corrected the mistakes we made in the first half, and we were able to do what we needed to do.

"That's what we're going to try and do in the first leg and hopefully we'll get a good result in the return leg."

PSG, meanwhile, head into the game having won the Coupe de la Ligue by beating Bastia 4-0 on Saturday, and they have been further boosted by Lucas Moura's return from injury.

Yet, with Ibrahimovic, Marco Verratti and Serge Aurier all suspended and Daid Luiz (hamstring) out, replicating their group-stage victory over Lionel Messi and co will be a tall order. 

Midfielder Thiago Motta is also a doubt with a thigh problem, but PSG coach Laurent Blanc is keen for his side to maintain their strong form despite the high-profile absentees.

Speaking after the win over Bastia, he said: "We would have liked to enjoy this victory to its full, but we don't have the time because we have to look towards Barcelona.

"We have enjoyed a superb week, the supporters too, with the wins over Marseille, Saint-Etienne and Bastia. We are in form and we need to continue in this vein."

Nicholas McGee