Puyol: “This is the most important match”

The captain defined the match against AC Milan as “incredible” and he is clear that the only way FC Barcelona know how to play is to attack.



ne of the heavyweights in the FC Barcelona squad, Carles Puyol, held a press conference before the decisive return leg of the Champions League quarterfinal tie against AC Milan. “We’ll take this game on like any other game: we’ll go out to win and try to play our game. We’re aware that we’re going up against a fantastic team, but I’m sure they’ll come out to defend and capitalise on counterattacks. We’ll have to put in a complete game both defensively and offensively,” said the defender.

On defining the importance of tomorrow’s match, the captain was very clear: “it’s an incredible match, the most important one because we have to win. There is no margin for error, it’s a final.” He added, “finishing with a draw doesn’t help us, except a 0-0. I’m convinced that the Camp Nou will be full, they [the fans] have always been on our side and they won’t let us down.”

The captain will, in all likelihood, figure in the starting line-up in tomorrow’s match. Puyol said he’ll play wherever Guardiola chooses to put him on the pitch: “wherever he thinks I should play, I’ll gladly go. It’s not ideal for me to play on the left, but I’m comfortable keeping tabs on their offence and if we play with a wide defender on the other side.”

Moreover, the captain talked about some of the key aspects of tomorrow’s match: “it’s always important to not concede goals; even more so at home. We have to play a very serious defensive match. Up top, we have to move the ball around with pace and score as soon as possible, even though we know it won’t be easy.”

On the attack

Puyol didn’t shy away from talking about how his team will play tomorrow: “we only have one way of playing: on the attack. That’s what we’ll do.” However, he was apprehensive when asked to predict what style of play AC Milan will employ. The Barça captain finished by saying: “we have to be ready for everything, we have to play our game.”

“It’s an honour to surpass Migueli"

If he plays against Milan, Carles Puyol will surpass Migueli and become the second Barça player to have played the most games for the Club. The defender is proud of his accomplishment, but he knows that it won’t be easy to catch the player with the most games for the Club. “It’s an honour to surpass Migueli, he’s an icon for all Culés. Catching Xavi is impossible because he’ll play many more games, but I also hope to play a lot of games myself.”(via FCBarcelona.com)