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Simeone: English failure in Europe is a 'wake-up call' for Premier League clubs
Apr 21, 2015 09:05:00
EXCLUSIVE COLUMN: The Atletico coach is surprised by Chelsea's dominance of the English top flight but maintains that it is more difficult to win La Liga than the Champions League
By Diego Simeone
I am surprised there are no English clubs left in the Champions League - English football has enormous potential with its footballers and also its financial clout.
The fact that there is no English team left in the last eight of the Champions League or in the Europa League is a wake-up call for the Premier League to look at why it is that, despite their great economic power and with all the many great footballers playing in England, Chelsea are so far ahead of everyone else and why they have no teams left in Europe.
I believe there are many great players in the Premier League and the financial conditions allow a number of teams to bring in top talents. That said, the Spanish league still has the two best teams: Real Madrid and Barcelona.
So for us at Atletico, we are competing against two teams with the obligation of winning the Champions League. At the very least, Madrid and Barcelona are among the last eight in Europe every season and usually the last four, so for Atletico to win La Liga last season was a tremendous achievement.
Without doubt, winning La Liga is much more difficult than winning the Champions League because, even though you face difficult matches in Europe, you meet rivals over one or two games, whereas in La Liga you are constantly competing with two of the strongest sides around and you face them four times.
There are plenty of quality teams left in the Champions League. Juventus are a very dangerous team. They are a great cup team and every time they get to this stage of a major competition, they are a very complicated rival. Their history means they will be prepared and whoever faces them will find it difficult.
They also have a great defence. That's the history of Juventus. Their structure has always been based on a strong defensive line and obviously their attacking power on the counterattack, their speed and explosive pace going forward.
But I repeat: Juventus at this stage of the Champions League, with the comfort of having almost won the Italian league, will be a very difficult, very complicated rival.
Porto are also doing a great job in the Champions League. They have been a great surprise: they play really good football, with an interesting dynamic in their play, they have an attacking team and they will be very difficult to beat.
Their presence at this stage of the Champions League shows just what a great season they are having in Europe this year.
Bayern Munich 6-1 Porto (agg 7-4): Lewandowski inspires stunning comeback
Apr 21, 2015 21:36:00
Pep Guardiola's side stormed into a 5-0 lead by half-time, and Xabi Alonso's late free kick ensured Jackson Martinez's header was scant consolation
Two goals from Robert Lewandowski helped inspire Bayern Munich to a sensational 6-1 thrashing of Porto and seal their place in the Champions League semi-finals.
Trailing 3-1 from the quarter-final first leg, Pep Guardiola's side produced a devastating first-half display, scoring five times in the opening 40 minutes to leave the visitors shell-shocked.
Defensive errors had cost Bayern dear in the opening encounter, but it was their supreme attacking quality that came to the fore at the Allianz Arena.
Club doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt resigned in the wake of last week's reverse, claiming his medical team had been blamed for the defeat, but even without the absent trio of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery, Guardiola's team simply had too much for the 2004 winners.
Thiago Alcantara - who netted Bayern's away goal at the Estadio do Dragao - opened the scoring inside quarter of an hour and it was 3-0 before the 30th minute thanks to further goals from Jerome Boateng and Robert Lewandowski.
Thomas Muller's deflected effort made it four, before Lewandowski doubled his tally with a clinical finish as Porto failed to live with Bayern's movement and incisiveness.
With the job done for the Bundesliga champions, the second half proved a low-key affair, Jackson Martinez's goal 17 minutes from time proving nothing more than consolation, especially as there was still time for Xabi Alonso to curl home a late free kick following a tackle that saw Ivan Marcano sent off for his second booking.
Bayern suffered a nightmare first 10 minutes in the opening leg when they found themselves 2-0 down, but there were no such mishaps here and it proved a sign of things to come when Muller's shot was saved by Fabiano and Lewandowski sent the rebound against the upright.
Guardiola's men did not have to wait long to break the deadlock, however, as Thiago headed in Juan Bernat's left-wing cross in the 14th minute.
And eight minutes later, Bayern doubled their advantage.
Holger Badstuber - selected ahead of Dante in Bayern's only change from the first leg - nodded a cross towards Boateng, who headed beyond Fabiano into the bottom right-hand corner.
Porto's game went from bad to worse in the 27th minute as Muller flicked on Philipp Lahm's driven cross and Lewandowski was left unmarked to plant his header into the net from eight yards.
Muller then got in on the act for Bayern as his speculative shot from distance took a wicked deflection off Bruno Martins Indi, wrongfooted Fabiano and trickled beyond the goalkeeper's feeble attempt to save with his leg and into the net.
With five minutes still to go until the break, Muller teed up Lewandowski, who made space for himself inside the area and shot low into the left-hand corner as Bayern ran riot.
Badstuber was perhaps fortunate only to receive a yellow card for a dangerous lunge on Ricardo Quaresma before Martinez's close-range header from Hector Herrera's cross left Porto needing two more.
Martinez went close with a low shot soon afterwards, but Porto's faint hopes were extinguished when Marcano was dismissed for a second bookable offence and Alonso curled the resulting free kick into the left-hand corner to seal a 7-4 aggregate scoreline.
The result capped a fine way for Bayern to celebrate Guardiola's 100th match in charge in style, this marking his 77th win in that time, and few can have come more convincingly than this.
Barcelona 2-0 Paris Saint-Germain (agg 5-1): Neymar completes emphatic victory
Apr 21, 2015 21:35:00
The Brazilian scored twice in the first half as the Catalans swept aside Laurent Blanc's men to reach the semi-finals
Two more goals from Neymar helped Barcelona to a comfortable 5-1 aggregate win over Paris Saint-Germain, following their 2-0 win at Camp Nou on Wednesday.
Despite the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marco Verratti from suspension, PSG headed into Tuesday's quarter-final second leg with a mountain to climb having lost the first leg at Parc des Princes 3-1.
And the French champions never looked pulling off a remarkable comeback at Camp Nou, Neymar instead putting the tie beyond doubt with an excellent performance highlighted by two first-half goals.
The Brazil striker was the beneficiary of the sparkling creativity of Andres Iniesta as he netted an early opener, taking advantage of a fragile PSG defence without the services of injured captain Thiago Silva.
And a fine delivery from right-back Dani Alves, heavily linked with a transfer to PSG in the close-season, set Neymar up to head home his second - and his fifth in four games against the Ligue 1 champions this term - 11 minutes before the break.
From there, Luis Enrique's side proceeded to take their foot off the gas, coasting into the last four for the sixth time in the last seven seasons with a display that gives further credence to the idea that they could well win a Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey treble.
Barca needed just 14 minutes to break the deadlock thanks to a piece of brilliance from Iniesta.
The Spain star jinked his way beyond three players and played an expertly placed pass into the path of Neymar, who coolly rounded Salvatore Sirigu and tapped the ball into the empty net.
PSG responded well to going behind but only the reflexes of Sirigu prevented Barca from extending their lead soon after. The goalkeeper palmed a long-range strike from Dani Alves away and then kept out Neymar's header on the rebound.
But Sirigu could do nothing to stop Neymar from doubling his tally in the 34th minute as he was given the simple task of nodding home Dani Alves' excellent in-swinging right-wing cross.
Iniesta was withdrawn and replaced by Xavi at half-time and Barca did lose some of their attacking impetus in a low-key second half.
Yet they were rarely threatened by a PSG team, who never looked like they believed they could reverse last week's demoralising defeat at home.
Verratti lashed wide from the edge of the area and Ibrahimovic stung the palms of Barca keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, but that was all the visitors could muster as Barca - who nearly added a third through Lionel Messi in injury time - marched on in ominous fashion.
The Italian coach is certain he still has plenty of options even without numerous key players and is optimistic about Real Madrid's chances versus Atletico
Carlo Ancelotti is confident Real Madrid have the strength in depth to cope with the injuries of Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema as they prepare for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie with Atletico Madrid.
The Santiago Bernabeu side recorded a scoreless draw against their city rivals last week and will have to make do without a number of first-team regulars in Wednesday's return leg on home soil.
Ancelotti remains unperturbed, though, and feels Isco can replace Modric in midfield, while singling out Jese and Chicharito as potential starters in the absence of Benzema and Bale.
"We are missing some important players but it's impossible for us to be more motivated than we are. We have to live with injuries. We did it in the past and it will not hurt our confidence," Ancelotti said at a press conference.
"Isco has played in Modric's position before and he did very well there. We have plenty of options even without Bale and Benzema. There's James, Jese and Chicharito. James has been doing great, both on the right and in midfield. Chicharito is in fine shape as well, both physically and mentally.
"I will choose the best possible line-up. I will select players that will help the team to play like we did in the first leg. I have the best squad in the world in my opinion."
The Madrid coach then went on to stress that the reigning European champions are expecting to reach the final four.
"Atletico have a very strong defence but we are confident that we can beat them. We have to repeat our performance at their stadium. We are ready for any outcome. However, It's very complicated to practice a penalty shootout.
"I think it will be an even match, we will focus on playing well for the entire 90 minutes. We have to stick to our strategy and apply it on the field. It will be an important game for all: the club, the players and the fans - we have a chance to reach the semi-finals."
Ancelotti also took the time to discuss Antoine Griezmann's fine performances in recent weeks and he admitted the Frenchman could cause Madrid problems.
"Griezmann is a very dangerous player who has been in fine form. We will have to be very careful with him and cannot lose focus."
The Argentine says his team must enjoy the game against the reigning European champions and admits he is unsure if Mario Mandzukic will feature
Diego Simeone insists there is no pressure on his Atletico Madrid team heading into the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final with Real Madrid.
The reigning Liga champions held Carlo Ancelotti's men to a goalless draw in the Vicente Calderon in the first leg and are looking to avoid defeat against them for the eighth time this season when they meet at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.
And Simeone feels his team have a "responsibility" heading into the clash, but no pressure, and says his team will be looking for ways to hurt their opponents.
"We have no pressure, we have a responsibility because the team has become competitive and is playing well, but pressure is something else," he told reporters.
"This game is exciting, these nights of football may never return. We live it, we play it, the best football comes in these situations.
"I'm more interested in how we can hurt them, and am not thinking about Madrid's injuries to Luka Modric and Gareth Bale.
"The replacements - who have spent a long time on the bench for Madrid - are also dangerous.
"We are focused on our preparation, we are only thinking about ourselves.
"The intensity of the first leg was of the best we have seen this season. It was a direct game and that is what is expected from one of the best teams in the world."
There remains some uncertainty over the fitness of Mario Mandzukic, but the Argentine hopes the Croatia striker can feature alongside Antoine Griezmann.
"He trained well yesterday. Let's see how he feels in Tuesday's session. We hope he will be okay to play. All of my players want to play and it won't be easy to choose the starting line-up. I have an idea of who will play and they will be the first to know.
"We have great players in defence and I have the problem of selecting the right players for the right game."
The Spanish midfielder is confident that his side can stretch their unbeaten run against their city rivals to eight games and reach the last four
Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke believes his side can hold onto their unbeaten run over Real Madrid this season and reach the semi-finals of the Champions League.
The two sides meet in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday after playing out a goalless draw in the Vicente Calderon last week.
It will be the eighth time the two sides clash this term, with Atletico unbeaten in the previous seven, and Koke is confident his side can get the better of Carlo Ancelotti's men in their own stadium.
"Winning is the most important thing - we have to score," he told reporters. "It will be 11 against 11; we don't care about the Real Madrid line-up. We have done well against Madrid in the last seven matches - we hope to win on Wednesday too.
The reigning European and world champions have been hit with a severe injury to Luka Modric, while Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema have also been ruled out of Wednesday's game, but Koke insists they will still be a strong unit.
"This is Real Madrid and whoever they play with, they have a great squad we have to do our job.
"We try to prepare every game in the best possible way, we are ready."
Toni Kroos criticised Atletico for their tendency to put pressure on referees in matches, but Koke insists their game is built on much more.
"We go out there to do our jobs. We can talk to the referee, it's part of the game, but I don't think that is the basis of our game, we do more things than that."
The coach believes his side are well prepared for every possible tactical set-up from the Serie A leaders and is confident they can progress
Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim says his side must "be smart" when they take on Juventus in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
The Italian side beat Monaco 1-0 in Turin in the first leg thanks to a goal from Arturo Vidal.
Jardim, though, believes his side can recover, insisting they are prepared to deal with whatever Massimiliano Allegri's men throw at them on Wednesday.
"We must be smart and know how to manage our game," he told reporters. "In the Champions League, we play a different style to what we play in Ligue 1.
"It's down to the players to make a difference on the pitch. We are ready to deal with any possible tactical set-up of Juventus."
Jardim also revealed experienced midfielder Jeremy Toulalan could yet play a part at Stade Louis II.
"We'll see tomorrow if Jeremy Toulalan can play. If he is not fit, Fabinho will play in the middle."
Defender Aymen Abdennour, meanwhile, is expecting a tough but enjoyable game.
"It will be a beautiful game, a challenge against one of the best teams in the world," he said.
"We're a young team but we have great ambition. We want to make it a great game."
Juventus know what to expect from Monaco - Allegri
By Joe Wright
Apr 21, 2015 20:56:00
The former AC Milan boss says his side must aim to score an away goal and warns they cannot afford to become complacent
Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri says his side know what to expect when they take on Monaco on Wednesday.
The Italian champions take a 1-0 lead to Stade Louis II for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final knowing that just a draw will take them into the last four.
While Allegri admits he is fully prepared to face a strong defensive unit against the Ligue 1 side, he maintains his own players cannot afford to become complacent and must look to score themselves.
"I don't know for certain what Monaco's tactics will be, but we will try to score as we know what they are about," Allegri told a press conference.
"Monaco are a team that defend well and are physically very strong, so it will be a difficult game, just like the first leg.
"It could come down to the finer details. We are in the quarter-finals, we have a chance of going through, and whether we do or not depends on ourselves. We are not that far into the competition yet; we can go even further. But let's not get too far ahead of ourselves."
Juventus are without the injured Paul Pogba but can call upon Simone Pepe and Arturo Vidal, with Allegri admitting he will have to be smart with his substitutions in order to keep his side's Champions League campaign alive.
"I think we are in for a long night and I will have to make the right substitutions," he said.
"Pepe is in the squad and he has been doing well but I don't think he is ready to start. My team has great quality, good character. We have the ability to progress and we will need to be brave and focused."
Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon believes the game is a chance for Juve to prove they can be considered one of the continent's best sides again as he aims to lift the Champions League trophy for the first time.
"It is a very important game for the club as a whole and the chance to show we are back among Europe's finest," he said.
"Monaco have what it takes to try and overturn the result. They are a strong team but we are also aware of our qualities.
"The Champions League is a trophy I've never lifted and one I'd like to as soon as possible. A team's success comes around through the squad, club and backroom staff. The coach has done really well to come in and immediately get on the same wavelength as us."
The Italy international says that the Catalan side thoroughly deserve their place in the last four of the Champions League
Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu has admitted that Barcelona were just too good for the French outfit in the Champions League.
The Catalan side won 2-0 on Tuesday to secure progress to the semi-finals with a 5-1 aggregate victory over the Ligue 1 champions.
Two goals from Neymar in the first half quickly killed off the tie, though the Italy international is adamant that Laurent Blanc’s men did all they could to progress.
"They started very strongly and scored after 15 minutes, which shattered our gameplan," he told Canal+.
"They are a truly strong side and we must admit that they were too strong."
It was the third successive time that PSG have lost out at the last-eight stage of the competition, and Sirigu admitted it was the most comprehensive defeat that they have suffered.
"It'’s the first time we've lost both legs of the quarter-finals," he added. "Sometimes in football it is simple, there is nothing to add. Barca were too strong, that's all."
While PSG's European ambitions have died for another year, they remain on track for a domestic treble as they have already won the Coupe de la Ligue, have a place in the Coupe de France final and lie second in Ligue 1 with a game in hand over leaders Lyon.
The former Chelsea defender is confident Paris Saint-Germain will regroup and have another crack at the Champions League next season
David Luiz had no arguments with Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League exit at the hands of Barcelona – and admitted Neymar and Luis Suarez are having an increasing influence on Luis Enrique's side.
Neymar scored twice at Camp Nou to give Barca a 2-0 second-leg win and a 5-1 aggregate success in their last-eight tie while Suarez continued his recent fine form with another impressive display.
Brazil defender Luiz told ITV: "They were the better team in both games. They controlled both games and they deserved to go through.
"We didn't play a great match [tonight]. We did not create opportunities like in the first match. We didn't play well then but we had seven or eight chances to score."
On his international team-mate Neymar and former Liverpool striker Suarez, he added: "Neymar and Suarez… they know now what they need to do with the philosophy of Barca and they proved it tonight."
Luiz dismissed the theory that big-spending PSG had under-achieved in reaching the last eight and pointed out they were not the only club that had invested heavily in new players.
"Barca have been paying a lot of money for many years," he said. "All the teams spend money. We did very well until we got here. But in the two games against Barca we were not at the same level.
"We need to improve year by year and next year we will fight to win the Champions League."
'It was no fun at all' - Martins Indi left flattened by Bayern thrashing
By Jon Fisher
Apr 21, 2015 23:16:00
The Netherlands international admits his side were punished ruthlessly, while Jackson Martinez was quick to divert attention back to domestic matters
Porto defender Bruno Martins Indi admitted the 6-1 thrashing at Bayern Munich was "no fun at all".
The visitors came into the second leg of their quarter-final tie with a 3-1 advantage but were blown away at the Allianz Arena, Bayern storming into a 5-0 half-time lead on their way to winning 6-1, and 7-4 on aggregate.
Netherlands international Martins Indi conceded it had been a chastening experience for the Portuguese side.
He told Sport1: "This is a massive loss and, of course, we are very disappointed. We came here with a lot of confidence but it all went very quickly.
"We didn't win enough duels and they know how to take advantage of that. The second half was a little bit better but Bayern were too good today, that was obvious.
"This is what football at the top level is all about. At home we punished them for making mistakes and this week they did that to us. It was no fun at all."
Porto skipper Jackson Martinez, who grabbed a consolation in the second half, also had few arguments with the result.
He told A Bola: "It was a very hard match for us and we suffered. Bayern were better collectively.
"We knew about the difficulties of this match but we could have done a lot better in the first half."
Next up for Porto is a top-of-the-table Primeira Liga clash at leaders Benfica on Sunday.
Martinez added: "We now have another tournament to dispute and we'll fight to the end. It will be a hard game at the [Estadio da] Luz but we are conscious of the opportunity we have to achieve our goals."
'Reina was our inside man' - Muller reveals key to Bayern's Porto rout
Apr 22, 2015 00:38:00
The Germany forward, who starred in the 6-1 thrashing on Tuesday, said the goalkeeper had advised them to expect a very different sort of game at the Allianz Arena
Thomas Muller has revealed that Pepe Reina was the real key to Bayern Munich thrashing of Porto on Tuesday.
The Bavarians were under pressure heading into the Champions League quarter-final decider having lost the first leg 3-1 in Portugal last week, with injuries still affecting Pep Guardiola's options.
However, Bayern's critics were blown out of the water - along with Julen Lopetegui's men - as goals from Robert Lewandowski, Thiago, Jerome Boateng, Muller and Xabi Alonso propelled the Bundesliga champions to a 6-1 rout in Munich.
Muller later explained that Reina - who faced Porto with Napoli last season - had prepared his team-mates to expect a very different side to the one which played so impressively in the first leg.
"Pepe Reina was the inside man for us. He played against them last year when at Napoli and told us they were a different team away from home," Muller, whose goal deflected off Bruno Martins Indi and between the outstretched legs of flailing goalkeeper Fabiano, told Sky Sport.
"We needed to change our attack and we did that. We found a lot more space in the final third. We didn't get our attacking pressing going in the second half because we were tired from the first."
When asked about his own goal, he joked: "What an absolute world-class hit, right? The second team coach told me if you don't know what to do with the ball, shoot, so that's what I did."
Guardiola suffered a wardrobe malfunction during the encounter and Muller pointed the finger of blame at his coach's Italian tailors for the incident.
"Italian tailors make trousers really tight, that's probably why Pep's broke!" he said.
Bayern join Barcelona - who triumphed 5-1 on aggregate over Paris Saint-Germain - in the last four of the elite European tournament.
The former Barcelona coach was thrilled with the reaction of his side in the quarter-final second leg - but warned fans not to expect such victories every week
Pep Guardiola thanked his Bayern Munich players after they bounced back from their surprise first-leg defeat to crush Porto and secure a place in the Champions League semi-finals.
Bayern were widely criticized for the manner of their 3-1 defeat at the Estadio do Dragao last Wednesday but produced the perfect response to win the return 6-1 at the Allianz Arena and coast through 7-4 on aggregate.
The tie was effectively over by half-time after goals from Thiago Alcantara, Jerome Boateng, Thomas Muller and a double from Robert Lewandowski put the hosts in complete control.
Jackson Martinez pulled one back for Porto but Xabi Alonso had the final say with a late free kick.
"That was very good," Guardiola told Sky. "We played very well in the first half, not so good in the second. I can only thank the players, the first 45 minutes was the reaction after the match in Porto.
"I am lucky to coach these great players but if people think we can win every match [like that] then they have to look for a new coach.
"Even after the game in Porto I had the feeling that we could make it. You always make up the difference in your head. I always try to analyse our opponents. It was not such a big surprise how they played in Porto. They have a very good team, but today they were not able to reach their level.
"I don't care too much who our next opponents will be. We will try our best whether it is Real, Barça, Atlético, Juventus or Monaco, that doesn't matter."
The win maintained Guardiola's record of having qualified for the semi-finals of Europe's elite club competition in each of his six years in management.
He achieved it four times with Barcelona and now twice at Bayern.
Lopetegui critical of Porto's first-half horror show
Apr 21, 2015 23:21:00
The former Barcelona goalkeeper was not impressed at his side's efforts and admitted they got what they deserved
Porto coach Julen Lopetegui lamented his side's abysmal first-half showing as they crashed out of the Champions League at the hands of Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
The visitors came into the second leg of their quarter-final tie with a 3-1 advantage but were blown away as Bayern established a 5-0 half-time lead on their way to a 6-1 win on the night.
Lopetegui said: "We were lacking three important players [Danilo, Alex Sandro and Cristian Tello], but that does not justify everything.
"We started the match very badly against a Bayern side that is very strong offensively, both individually and collectively - even more so when they are playing at home - and in the first half they were able to settle the match and the qualification for the next round.
"In the second half we were better, we were able to have more possession, something we couldn't do in the first period. When that happens you are always going to be punished.
"Against a team like Bayern you have to be at your best during the 90 minutes and we were not able to do that. Congratulations to Bayern.
"We are sad, but we made a great campaign in this Champions League. In 11 matches this was our only defeat.
"We knew it was always going to be a difficult match and we made a lot of mistakes in the first half.
"But in the second period we showed that without those mistakes we could have fought for qualification. Now we have one competition left to win [the Primeira Liga] and we will do everything to win it."
The coach admits it would be pedantic to look for flaws in his side's win over PSG and says he is delighted to see Pep Guardiola's Bayern Munich progress
Barcelona were as close to perfect as possible in their 2-0 triumph over Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, according to head coach Luis Enrique.
Neymar got both goals for the Catalans at Camp Nou as they put to bed any distant hopes that Laurent Blanc's men could find their way back into the tie having lost 3-1 at Parc des Princes last week.
Luis Enrique - who now has the best record of a Barca coach after 50 games, with 42 victories - refrained from describing Barca's performance as flawless but says it would be harsh to critique his team at all.
"If we were fussy I'm sure I could find something wrong," he told reporters when asked if that was the perfect Barca performance. "But if I wasn't fussy, it would be hard to deny the players carried out the game-plan as perfectly as possible.
"It was brilliant to see the attitude of the players, the pressure we applied in the attacking half, the chances we created... It was a good team effort and good news for Catalunya.
"But coaches always complain and can find room for improvement; a placid team is in danger of not foreseeing complications and can lose focus.
"La Liga is still difficult because we have Real Madrid fighting us for it. In the Champions League there will be three other teams able to win. In the Copa del Rey we face Athletic Bilbao who have a history of causing us problems.
"It would be very silly of me to think this is mission accomplished - the goal is to be in the Champions League final now. We've reached what I saw as the minimum requirement but now we need to get to the final."
Barca could be drawn against Pep Guardiola's Bayern Munich - who hammered Porto on Tuesday to reach the final four - and Luis Enrique praised the former Camp Nou coach for being so ruthless with a shoestring squad.
"I'm very happy that Bayern won, I like to see good things happen for my friends, like Pep," he added.
"Scoring six against top-class opposition with numerous injuries to your first team demonstrates what a coach Pep is and what a team he has."
Blanc: PSG must be patient in Champions League chase
Apr 21, 2015 23:52:00
The former defender says his old club offer hope that the French champions are not too far from being able to conquer the continent
Laurent Blanc believes Barcelona provide the perfect example of why big-spending Paris Saint-Germain should be patient in their pursuit of a maiden Champions League title.
Blanc's side were unable to overturn a 3-1 first-leg deficit in their quarter-final tie at Camp Nou, with two Neymar goals giving the hosts a 2-0 victory in the return.
The defeat means success in Europe's elite club competition continues to elude the Ligue 1 champions - but Blanc pointed to Barca as reason for optimism.
"If you follow Barcelona, you know how patient you have to be to win the Champions League," he said.
"How long did it take them? They won it [for the first time] in 1992 when the club were almost in their centenary year. I am not saying PSG will need to wait that long, but we have to be patient."
Blanc conceded Barca deserved to go through after bossing both legs of the last-eight tie.
"We hoped to play better but Barcelona didn't let us, just as they didn't let us in the first leg," he added. "Barcelona deserve to go through. We didn't do enough to earn that ticket to the semis.
"We just didn't defend [well enough] but although they were superior, we did see a bit of the ball. We had our weapons, fewer than Barcelona, but we had them. We didn't abandon our philosophy, we stuck to our style. We took risks.
"We beat Chelsea [in the previous round] and that was amazing but not enough to stay in the competition. We had more experience than our opponents then, but tonight we lacked experience compared with Barcelona. Everyone wants fast results but Paris will move forward given a positive mentality and time."
The club chief was astonished at the way his players tore Porto apart in Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final decider
Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge described his team's 6-1 victory over Porto on Tuesday as "miraculous".
Pep Guardiola's men headed into the quarter-final second leg at the Allianz Arena under a cloud of negativity, following the 3-1 first-leg defeat and the subsequent resignation of club doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt.
All the pre-match talk of whether Bayern were facing a European disaster quickly fell apart, however, as the hosts raced into a 5-0 lead by half-time.
A more measured second-half performance - due to the players' exhaustion from their efforts in the opening 45 minutes - ensured the game ended 6-1 and ended Julen Lopetegui's European hopes in crushing fashion.
Rummenigge was stunned that his players could pull such a performance out of the bag despite being without key players such as Bastian Schweinsteiger, Arjen Robben, Franck Ribery and Medhi Benatia due to injury.
"We just witnessed something miraculous," Bayern legend Rummenigge said in a short but sweet comment to reporters.
Polish striker Robert Lewandowski was the only player to score twice in Munich, sharing the scoresheet with Thiago, Jerome Boateng, Thiago and Xabi Alonso, and he conceded the final scoreline was hard to believe.
"The first half was awesome," the former Borussia Dortmund goalscorer said. "We knew we had to push hard but five goals in the first half is crazy!"
Bayern are back in action on Saturday when they host Hertha Berlin. If Wolfsburg cannot match or better Bayern's result when they face Borussia Monchengladbach the following day then the Bavarians will be crowned Bundesliga champions for the third consecutive season.
The centre-back congratulated former coach Pep Guardiola on dispatching Porto in the last eight of the Champions League but says every game from this point is a challenge
Gerard Pique has warned Bayern Munich that Barcelona are not afraid to be drawn against them in the Champions League semi-finals.
The Catalans reached the last four on Tuesday by wrapping up a 5-1 aggregate victory over Paris Saint-Germain, while Bayern came back from a 3-1 deficit to smash Porto 7-4 over two legs.
The last time Barca faced Bayern was in 2012-13 when they were humiliated at the semi-final stage of the competition as Jupp Heynckes' team romped to a 7-0 aggregate triumph.
With former Camp Nou coach Pep Guardiola now at the helm in Munich, a reunion in the last four would pit two of the clear pre-tournament favourites together, but Pique says any opponent from here on in represent a challenge.
"I don't think that we need to avoid Bayern in the Champions League semi-finals," the centre-back told ITV Sport. "We are playing in the Champions League semi-finals and everything will be difficult.
"When you're in the semi-finals of the Champions League you need to be really good and need a little bit of luck. Congratulations to Pep, though, Bayern must have played a good game. It is definitely a good score to win 6-1."
Pique lauded the attacking trident of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez but insists that Barca's excellent form should not allow them to ease off - especially as Real Madrid are just two points behind in La Liga.
"I think we are getting better and better," the former Manchester United man added. "We are playing good football. Up front we have three players who are really, really good.
"When one of them doesn't score, one of the other two does. We know that if we defend well then we will score goals. We are playing at a good level and we have to keep playing like this.
"We will see what we can achieve this season, we will have to focus and concentrate. Espanyol will be really difficult as it's the Catalunya derby game.
"We know that, if we don't win, Madrid can go ahead of us in La Liga, and we have to try to avoid that."
Barcelona had to attack to avoid risks, says Mascherano
By Stefan Coerts
Apr 22, 2015 07:44:41
The Argentina international feels his side were right to employ an offensive approach and is hopeful that they can now go all the way in Europe
Javier Mascherano feels Barcelona had no other option but to attack in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie with Paris Saint-Germain in order to avoid risks.
The Catalans had recorded a 3-1 win at the Parc des Princes last week and two goals from Neymar helped them to a 2-0 victory at Camp Nou to book their ticket for the semi-finals.
However, Mascherano believes things could have gone differently had Barcelona not started the return with attacking intentions.
"I think the mind-set with which we faced the game was correct. If they scored first, they'd have gotten back in it. To avoid that, we had to attack, and that was how we avoided the risks," the Argentine defender told the official Barcelona website.
"Our plan was always to play for the win right from the first minute, even though the result was already in our favour. It was the only way."
Mascherano then went on to stress that it's vital for Barcelona to have made the last four of the Champions League for the eighth time in a row.
"It's important for the club to be in the semi-finals," the former Liverpool man added. "It may sound easy, but it isn't.
"We're two games away from another Champions League final and hopefully we can make it past the next round, too."
