The press conference given today by Jordi Alba focused mainly on the pairing with Paris Saint Germain in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. He sees it as a difficult game and wasn’t the slightest bit euphoric knowing that Barca has to face the French outfit.
“PSG is a tough opponent. A complete team with midfield players of enormous quality, ” he said, not going into too much detail about the draw (“We didn’t have any preference”) and highlighting that the second leg will be in the Nou Camp.
The Barca left back spoke of the French attacking power: “They have very good players up front. Lucas Moura is very fast on the right and goes on the counter attack very well. ”
Ibrahimovic will miss the first leg in Paris but not the return leg. “He’s a real danger. He’s a great player. They will be lost without him in the first game.” They have more players. “Pastore, Lavezzi, Thiago Motta”. On a couple of occasions Alba stressed the need to learn from mistakes and lessons learned against Milan.
Jordi Alba also noted that Barca has to keep up the aggression until the end of season. And said to expect to see the best Barcelona in the next few games. Real Madrid has been drawn against Turkish club Galatasaray. He said that neither Barca nor Madrid have been lucky in the draw as all quarter final games are difficult.
From the possibility of being left out of the Champions League to thrashing A.C Milan, Alba believes that Barca has erased the bad memories of their last three losses.
He said that if Barca loses, it’s big news on the outside. Neither does he feel that Barca is favourite to reach the final at Wembley. “It’s good to be in this situation but last year there were favourites and none of them reached the final. Getting through is decided by small details, ” he added. Asked if he’d like a Barça-Real Madrid final, Jordi Alba said that he would like Barca to reach the final and win it.
The goal he scored against A.C Milan, which ultimately led to Milan being dumped out of the Champions League was one of the most important of his career so far, he said. Asked about coach Tito Vilanova who will be back by the end of March, Alba remarked that they want Vilanova back as quickly as possible. He didn’t know the exact date but would like it to be as soon.
Finally, on Rayo Vallecano, Barcelona’s next opponents in the league on Sunday, Jordi Alba had this to say: “They are having a magnificent season, they like to play with the ball and play well.” And talking about Roberto Trashorras, who Alba coincided with at Barca’s youth Academy, Jordi said that he was proving to be a great player and must be taken into account.
As the game is at the Nou Camp you might be interested in some accommodation in Barcelona to be able to get to the game on time. The game kicks off at 21:00 local time.
