20 February 2013 the two European giants will meet again at Camp Nou. Barcelona has an advantage considering they have not lost at home in European competition since 2009. However, if both teams score and the match ends in a tie, Milan will progress because of the away goals rule.
AC Milan will probably be allowed relatively few opportunities because any side that plays Barcelona usually maintains possession less than 50 percent of the match. Ibrahimović must get more involved, either by creating more openings to shoot or by holding the ball to give Milan's midfielders a chance to run the pitch.
Barcelona have only lost one final in the Champions League era, incidentally to Milan in 1993/94. Even worse, it’s Johann Cruyff’s legendary Dream Team that suffered a defeat to an equally competitive Milan side. Ask any Blaugrana supporter and they’ll admit that it’s still a thorn in their side.
However, based on league position alone. Milan aren't even one of the top three teams in Italy, while Barcelona stand head and shoulders above their peers in La Liga.
Barcelona have been upset many times by some combination of teams with excellent players and managers who come up with an excellent tactical plan. AC Milan, at present, do not have either of those things.
Between the weekend's match against Parma and this week's early training sessions, Milan have lost a few key players through injury. They're also without Mario Balotelli, who is cup-tied. Their dynamic forwards and midfielders will either be limited or not dressed at all when they face Barcelona at the San Siro, and it's fair to wonder whether or not this match is worthy of any serious analysis.
Victor Valdes vs. the derp monster: Milan's best chance of getting a goal (or two) is probably a Victor Valdes error (or two). He's generally an excellent keeper, but occasionally makes horrible errors that leave viewers wondering how in the world he became Barcelona's No. 1 and stayed there for so long. Tito Vilanova won't be too broken up if Valdes walks on a free and he gets, say, Marć-Andre ter Stegen to replace him.
Lionel Messi vs. Philippe Mexes and Cristian Zapata: Okay, so these guys can't stop Messi if he's at his best. We can't even pretend this is a legitimate "matchup", but they have to be careful about when they close down. Messi can't be given unlimited time and space, but Barcelona's goals are generally aided by a defender stepping out on Messi too quickly. Messi drops deep to get the ball, a defender chases, that space is opened up and the Blaugrana spot it. It's the typical Barcelona goal recipe. Mexes and Zapata need to avoid giving away those gifts.
AC Milan (4-3-3): Christian Abbiati; Kévin Constant, Philippe Mexès, Cristián Zapata, Ignazio Abate; Massimo Ambrosini, Sulley Muntari, Riccardo Montolivo; Kevin-Prince Boateng, Bojan Krkić, M'Baye Niang
FC Barcelona (4-3-3): Victor Valdes; Jordi Alba, Gerard Piquè, Carles Puyol, Dani Alves; Sergio Busquets, Xavi Hernandez, Cesc Fàbregas; Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Pedro Rodriguez
You are invited to watch AC Milan vs FC Barcelona live stream:
HD Stream: LINK#1
Flash Stream: LINK#2
Other: LINK#3
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