Not Lionel Ritchie? Or Mar? Or the Cannibal? Mascherano?!!!
YES! I'm not speaking Cantonese. Mascherano will be hugely important tonight as Barcelona are the away team playing against a very strong crew of cats who want a little revenge.
For Barcelona, they have the best front three in the world that can score against any demon, bear or goose they want. But a little respect will be needed against one of the strongest teams in this tournament. And as the home team, PSG will be looking to ATTACK Barcelona and give them enough g's to build from. That means some defence will be needed.
Mascherano's best position is as a defensive midfielder because he is an amazing tackler and hustler, but he knows how to play with the ball and distribute it to launch an attack. But interceptions will be key and winning loose balls and getting tight on Cavani and Pastore will be very crucial in restricting PSG.
The main directive is stop PSG from scoring. If Barcelona can do that, then this tie is close to being over. To do that, Barcelona have to deny PSG the ball, which is where the possession comes, but also to really stop them from having a sniff at goal, and forming a formidable defensive line that they cannot penetrate.
It won't be easy and these two teams are very similar. But with all the attack Barcelona may have, if you concede too many, it puts too much pressure on Lionel and his amigos to get the goals needed to put them back in a winning position.
RESPECT THE DEFENCE!!!
HH
