April 15 (Reuters) – Paris Saint-Germain will qualify for the last four of the Champions League if they recover from their 3-2 home defeat to Barcelona last week in the quarter-final first leg, their team said on Monday. coach Luis Enrique.
The Spaniard, who led Barca to the treble in 2015, was confident PSG could overcome what he saw as an unfair loss and continue their quest for a first Champions League crown.
“We are firmly convinced that we will turn the situation around,” Luis Enrique said at a press conference on Monday.
“The first match was hard fought by both teams, but the result was not what we deserved. The 3-2 score means we have to play the match.”
PSG went into the first leg unbeaten in their previous 27 matches in all competitions, but were undone by a Barcelona side looking to return the club to the top of European football after collapsing in the group stage two years right now.
PSG had the benefit of a weekend off from Ligue 1 to rest for the second leg, which is an advantage Luis Enrique believes will help enforce an aggressive game plan.
“We will press from the first minute and they will play their game. When we have the ball we will try to create as many chances as possible,” he said.
“The days after the match were difficult for us, but the good thing about football is that there is another match against the same opponent and now we have an idea of what that we have to do. We are in a very good moment and we are ready.”
Barcelona welcome the return of Moroccan full-back Achraf Hakimi, who missed the first leg due to suspension.
He said PSG were determined to beat Barca and establish a winning culture and shared his manager’s confidence in their ability to fight back against the five-time Champions League winners.
“We come here to bring victory back to Paris,” Hakimi said at a press conference on Monday.
“We arrive with a lot of desire, the desire to change what happened in the first leg. We arrive to win.
“We talked to each other, we motivated each other. We want to stay together and win.”
