21 November 2017
Miralem Pjanic and Juventus will look to bounce back from Sunday's loss in Sampdoria when they take on Barcelona on Wednesday night at Allianz Stadium, knowing that a win would secure their passage to the round of 16 for the Bianconeri.
Here is what the Bosnian midfielder had to say at the pre-match press conference on Tuesday night:
A FAMILIAR FOE
"We have the same respect for Barcelona that we had last year. It’s a very difficult team to face and, as an opponent, they’re a Champions League favorite. That said, it's our objective to qualify for the next round and hopefully tomorrow we can get the result we need.
"As Ivan Rakitic pointed out, they didn’t like to lose here just as we didn’t enjoy our loss at the Nou Camp. This leg we need to react, fight back and prevent them from being effective.”
TWO GREAT SIDES MEET UP
"Barca is a great team and a great club that is recognized and acknowledged by everyone in world football. You can always learn something more when you see them play between Busquets, Iniesta, Xavi and others, they’re all great players and important examples that can really teach you something important.
"The Blaugrana have been doing very well this season, but tomorrow they’re an opponent and no more than that. We have some good memories against them and I hope that tomorrow will go our way too."
READY TO BOUNCE BACK
"Obviously I don’t feel good when we don’t do well and I’m very disappointed that we lost against Sampdoria because that shouldn’t have happened, but now we need to focus on tomorrow’s match and be prepared and ready.
"We all need to take responsibility as we’ve always done and take control of the situation. Victories are always the right response."
STEP BY STEP
"In the last three years Juventus has been to the Champions League final twice though we haven’t won, but we have been working very well and the coach as well. In a single match anything can happen, but what matters right now is the present. To qualify from the group is our first target and then we’ll see what happens beyond that.
"Our aim is to make it to the end as we did last year, but now we need to proceed step-by-step which starts with reaching the last 16 tomorrow. We’ve been doing well in Italy and are the only ones in the last few years to have reached the final which is a very tough thing to achieve because there are many top teams to defeat along the way."
